For those that can afford them, the large villas at Whitmore Heath offer the tranquillity of the countryside within striking distance of urban centers like Stoke-on-Trent and Stafford, an hour’s drive north of Birmingham, the largest city in the English Midlands.
Yet on Heath Road, where some house prices have exceeded a million pounds (about $1.3 million), padlocked gates and signs warn trespassers of CCTV security monitoring.
Outside one house stands a dumpster filled with waste while the roof of another is carpeted with a veneer of moss.
Peer through the large windows of a family home, and not a single piece of furniture can be seen inside.
This scene of abandonment is a byproduct of a multibillion-dollar rail project that has spanned three decades and six prime ministers — a case study in the problems Britain encounters when planning large-scale infrastructure, and of the scarring that remains when such projects go awry.
Persons:
Whitmore Heath, —
Locations:
Whitmore, Stoke, Trent, Stafford, Birmingham, English Midlands, Heath