Preston Bus Station to be demolished

[tbtc]

Nobody has been blessed with the council's plans. All we know is - smaller station

We know it'll be smaller and would have to be built at the lowest possible cost. That does not suggest to me any level of comfort for passengers.

As it will be built at a smaller footprint at a lower cost. The consequences of such should make some factors about its constructive obvious.

We do know that the new station will be smaller, covering a smaller footprint, and built at a reduced budget

Of course it'll be smaller - it'll actually built at the right size for Preston's bus requirements, rather than the current oversized behemoth.

I don't know how you know that just because it'll be smaller it'll be uncomfortable - this sounds as relevant as the people arguing that the seats in trains yet to be built (IEP etc) won't be comfortable.

 

[Nick W]

Of course it'll be smaller - it'll actually built at the right size for Preston's bus requirements, rather than the current oversized behemoth.

I don't know how you know that just because it'll be smaller it'll be uncomfortable - this sounds as relevant as the people arguing that the seats in trains yet to be built (IEP etc) won't be comfortable.

Which bus station will be better? One with £3m for the whole bus station, or one with £3m spent just on refurbishment?

 

[tbtc]

Which bus station will be better? One with £3m for the whole bus station, or one with £3m spent just on refurbishment?

If it's a game of rhetorical questions then I could ask "which bus station will be better? one with the right number of stances or one with three times the amount required"...

...you'd have to spend a lot of money to turn the current bus station into anything welcoming/ modern - painted concrete won't be enough

 

[Nick W]

If it's a game of rhetorical questions then I could ask "which bus station will be better? one with the right number of stances or one with three times the amount required"...

Half the stands will be removed and the west side of the bus station could then be used for new development abutting the bus station structure. This would leave it with the number of stands a new facility is likely to have.

...you'd have to spend a lot of money to turn the current bus station into anything welcoming/ modern - painted concrete won't be enough

There's a famous concrete building in Rome called the Pantheon.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

There's a famous concrete building in Rome called the Pantheon.

I am finding it somewhat difficult to envisage the stances inside that rather nice bus station in the link that you have so carefully provided....

 

[Nick W]

I am finding it somewhat difficult to envisage the stances inside that rather nice bus station in the link that you have so carefully provided....

Amazing what a lick o' paint will do, isn't it?

 

[PR1Berske]

The Lancashire Evening Post reports today that a local multimillionaire is putting forward a bid to save the station.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

The Lancashire Evening Post reports today that a local multimillionaire is putting forward a bid to save the station.

Will that bid also provide the much-needed internal upgrading works to bring about the current disgraceful internal fabric to a 21st century standard and also provide the finance to cover any ongoing remedial works that will be required in future years ?

 

[snail]

From the LEP today:

An airport-style lounge is the vision behind the multi-million pound takeover bid for Preston bus station, it can be revealed.

The Evening Post understands the proposal put forward by tycoon Simon Rigby would see it one side of the terminal facing towards the city centre kept as a bus station with the opposite side turned into a mix of shops and leisure uses.

The bidders have presented Town Hall bosses with a vision of coffee shops, convenience stores, shoe repair shops and leisure attractions on the side bordered by Tithebarn Street.

http://www.lep.co.uk/news/business/airport-style-plan-for-preston-bus-station-overhaul-1-5439875

So the masterplan is 'convenience stores and shoe repair shops'. That should pack 'em in!

There is a contradiction in the report in that Tithebarn Street is the side facing the city centre but I can't say I'm overwhelmed by the proposal.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Is the retail shop provision so poor in Preston town centre that the proposed retail units in that plan would ensure an immediate occupancy when made available. Is Preston a city not affected to the closure of well-known retail group stores that have been the bane of so very many of other North-West cities and towns ?

 

[snail]

No it isn't. The adjoining Guild Hall arcade is an immediate example. Used to have a Morrisons but now not much more than a collection of tat. There will be a guaranteed footfall to the bus station but whether that can make the project viable is the big question.

 

[PR1Berske]

The campaign to save Preston Bus Station was featured on BBC Two's "Daily Politics" today.

 

[Mugby]

Developers promise anything and everything to get their plans through, much of it barefaced lies.

They know every trick in the book. They know that naive and gullible councillors will fall for it every time.
If there's any doubt, all they need to say is that their scheme may create xxx number of jobs.

How many times have towns been promised superior shops, stylish cafe bars, a pleasant environment and such rubbish. Then the new bus station turns out to be an afterthought crammed into a bit of spare space at the back of a new supermarket or office block!

 

[Nick W]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-21685901

You forgot the biggest trick---deliberately rut it down so it becomes decrepit, then use that as an excuse to knock it down.

The fact that so much of the original décor survives from 1969 is a testament to the quality of the structure.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-21685901

How much of their budgeted fund will the World Monument Fund be putting forward to back their placement of Preston Bus Station on that status they have so endowed ?

 

[snail]

The fact that so much of the original décor survives from 1969 is a testament to the quality of the structure.

Have you read any of the previous posts? If it's such a 'quality' structure why is so much money needed to repair it and make it fit for purpose?

 

[PR1Berske]

Have you read any of the previous posts? If it's such a 'quality' structure why is so much money needed to repair it and make it fit for purpose?

Because it has suffered deliberate "managed decline".

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Because it has suffered deliberate "managed decline".

From what period of time would you say that what you say above has occurred and who was instrumental ? Was it any political party ?

 

[Whistler40145]

It's been a steady decline over many years, probably since bus privatisation.

I just wonder if this would have been different if the bus operators themselves had to maintain the bus station?

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[snail]

Because it has suffered deliberate "managed decline".

You miss my point. I was asking why such a quantity of money was needed to restore the apparently long-lived 'quality' structure, not how it had got in that state.

 

[90019]

Because it has suffered deliberate "managed decline".

So how much have you raised so far to save and maintain the building?

 

[Nick W]

You miss my point. I was asking why such a quantity of money was needed to restore the apparently long-lived 'quality' structure, not how it had got in that state.

£5m to repair and alter the structure. Some of this is because the Western side's structure would be stripped back to the steel reinforcement to permit new use. Bear in mind that the structure has had over 40 years of constant use.
£2m to bring the building up to modern H&S standards and DDA compliance.
£0.25m to dismantle the concrete aprons on the Western side.
£3.5m to refurbish the building (most of the materials including the floor are original so this is an understandable figure.
£0.8m for a new coach station (I don't understand why this is necessary to be honest).
£0.3m for a covered walkway
£0.3m misc costs
£0.5m to remove existing bus station tenants

Add optimism bias and profit and that reaches £23m. A new much smaller bus station without a car park and without the new use permitted by the alterations would be £15m, only £5m cheaper but probably end up costing more in the long run in terms of providing retail space and parking. Value for money?

How much of their budgeted fund will the World Monument Fund be putting forward to back their placement of Preston Bus Station on that status they have so endowed ?

I suspect that not only will they not have enough money to maintain any valued monuments but they won't have enough to pay researches and project leaders for their time, and hence are dependent on volunteers.

As a mere student who will probably be overdrawn by the end of the month (though less than the last two quarters) following voluntary work last summer, I wouldn't be able to support a structure financially.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I suspect that not only will they not have enough money to maintain any valued monuments but they won't have enough to pay researches and project leaders for their time, and hence are dependent on volunteers.

As a mere student who will probably be overdrawn by the end of the month (though less than the last two quarters) following voluntary work last summer, I wouldn't be able to support a structure financially.

So is the World Monument Fund something that is only a vehicle for aspirational accreditations ? The word "fund" in their title conveys the understanding that they have financial wherewithal to supplement their aspirational accreditations. It would be better if the word "fund" was replaced by a different word in their title.

It sounds on that basis that I too could set up such an organization, full of aspirational projects, but without the finance available required to carry out the required works.

 

[snail]

£5m to repair and alter the structure. Some of this is because the Western side's structure would be stripped back to the steel reinforcement to permit new use. Bear in mind that the structure has had over 40 years of constant use.

So you consider it a testament to its quality that it only needs £5M spending on the structure. Astonishing.

 

[Nick W]

So is the World Monument Fund something that is only a vehicle for aspirational accreditations ? The word "fund" in their title conveys the understanding that they have financial wherewithal to supplement their aspirational accreditations. It would be better if the word "fund" was replaced by a different word in their title.

Good luck achieving that with $16m per year.

It sounds on that basis that I too could set up such an organization, full of aspirational projects, but without the finance available required to carry out the required works.

You'd be very much encouraged to do so if the cause was worthy!

So you consider it a testament to its quality that it only needs £5M spending on the structure. Astonishing.

Roads not maintained since the 1960s are generally in need of repairs. This is a structure that takes similar loadings.

 

[snail]

Roads not maintained since the 1960s are generally in need of repairs. This is a structure that takes similar loadings.

Oh, you are losing me now. First you comment that its condition is a testament to its quality but now say millions of pounds in repairs is to be expected. So its quality can't be so good after all.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Shall we "draw a line in the sand" and ask what is the current timescale for the consideration of proposals for private purchase of this bus station, then for the next stage of final decision making on either the retention of the current bus station or the building of a new bus station.

I am sure there are those on this thread who will have the information at hand.

 

[PR1Berske]

The leader of Preston Council said that the deadline for dealing with the station was the end of January. We're now part-way through March.

With timescales, as with money, nothing they say holds up to much.

 

[talltim]

Brutalist train station by rh1985moc, on Flickr

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Brutalist train station by rh1985moc, on Flickr

I believe there is a short clip on YouTube regarding this.