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Good and bad bus stations.

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TheGrandWazoo

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Harris Museum, Winkley Square, Preston Guild (next one 2032, so I may not see it) and the glory of St Warburgh's, even to a non-Catholic like me.

The problem with Preston Bus Station (I married a Preston girl in 1969, whose father worked for Ribble and, before that, Scout Motors of Preston) has always been pedestrian access to the buses. From the very first day (I wasn't there but saw it within weeks) proud Prestonians wouldn't accept you had to go through a dingy underpass when you could just walk across the concourse dodging the buses, which in those days were almost exclusively two-person operated, so you could get shouted at by a conductor! Talk of fines was all talk (rightly imo) and the problem only got resolved when fewer and fewer people used the station at all. Before the bus station opened, the Corporation buses either terminated in town at a selection of locations or were part of cross-town routes, some theoretically jointly worked with Ribble. A bus station was needed, and a plague on the houses of property speculators and their partners-in-crime local councillors who wish to rid any town or city of them, unless a better one is to be built in its place.

Andrew Flintoff and, if memory serves, Frank Hayes also are from Preston, not to mention the truly great Tom Finney, with Stanley Matthews the greatest English footballers since WW2.

Not wishing to denigrate Preston (and I was concentrating on architecture). Yes it has some good buildings but is St Walburges as impressive as Durham Cathedral or York Minster etc? All the examples you mention are impressive and even beautiful but Preston bus station is exceptional. Not to everyone's taste but it is the one building that I would say is truly special.
 
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Tommy1581

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BAD
Ashington: Garage-type setup, depot now disused, stand C is too small for any vehicle. If crossing one side to the other of the bus station, you have to cross the same road 3 times.

Morpeth: Drive-in, reverse out setup. Stands are cramped. Newcastle-bound X14/X15/X18 stand is always overflowing. Buses hit railings on a daily basis.

Alnwick: A very strange concrete "bus station". The stands can't accommodate wheelchair ramps. Hardly any seats.

Newcastle Haymarket: Cold and uncomfortable. Another drive-in, reverse-out setup.

Regent Centre: Hardly an interchange, a few bus stops and a strange covered pedestrian crossing.

Northumberland Park "Interchange": One bus stop and a Metro station
 
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TheGrandWazoo

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BAD
Ashington: Garage-type setup, depot now disused, stand C is too small for any vehicle. If crossing one side to the other of the bus station, you have to cross the same road 3 times.

Morpeth: Drive-in, reverse out setup. Stands are cramped. Newcastle-bound X14/X15/X18 stand is always overflowing. Buses hit railings on a daily basis.

Alnwick: A very strange concrete "bus station". The stands can't accommodate wheelchair ramps. Hardly any seats.

Newcastle Haymarket: Cold and uncomfortable. Another drive-in, reverse-out setup.

Regent Centre: Hardly an interchange, a few bus stops and a strange covered pedestrian crossing.

Northumberland Park "Interchange": One bus stop and a Metro station

As explained earlier in this thread, Alnwick won't have any work done to it as it's owned by Arriva and they're just waiting to capitalise on selling it. At one time, it probably would've been Morrisons wishing to expand their store but not likely now. More probably having some flats built on it instead.

Regent Centre is simply a place to interchange onto the Metro but was always the least successful as most passengers just stay on the bus to the City Centre

Ashington bus station/depot will be totally redeveloped though a new bus station is supposed to be part of the plans. Also, at least you didn't have to experience the old bus station which makes the current facility seem superb!! See link below

https://www.flickr.com/photos/44483738@N05/4318421409/in/album-72157623321390511/

As for Haymarket and Morpeth, they were both larger facilities that were replaced by something smaller to accommodate more retail space! Saw tooth designs take up less space but also they remove off stand parking! Another similarity is that the ones they replaced were much worse in terms of customer facilities. The Haymarket one had no facilities except a travel office portakabin and was baltic even in summer!

Dare I say it but I find it slightly amusing when people complain about current facilities when often, they are so much better (for passenger comfort if not for drivers manoeuvring) than ones in the past!
 
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Bletchleyite

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The problem with Preston Bus Station is that it is in the wrong place. The proposal for a new one nearer the railway station (and thus most of the shopping) would have been more sensible.

Meanwhile, I see Fishergate has gone one way even for buses. Madness.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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The problem with Preston Bus Station is that it is in the wrong place. The proposal for a new one nearer the railway station (and thus most of the shopping) would have been more sensible.

Meanwhile, I see Fishergate has gone one way even for buses. Madness.

A shopping centre, when built, often alters the balance of a town or city centre. That said, the demolition of Preston bus station would be regarded in future very much as the demolition of the Euston arch (and remember that the hotel at St Pancras nearly went the same way - seems almost impossible to believe now).

Bad bus stations that have gone and were seemingly dark, unremitting pools of darkness and fumes are Birmingham Bull Ring, Edinburgh, Darlington, Chelmsford, etc
 

Tetchytyke

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Morpeth: Drive-in, reverse out setup. Stands are cramped. Newcastle-bound X14/X15/X18 stand is always overflowing. Buses hit railings on a daily basis.

Newcastle Haymarket: Cold and uncomfortable. Another drive-in, reverse-out setup.

Both of these bus stations have one thing in common: they were redeveloped to provide extra retail space, and they are more welcoming for passengers as a result.

I don't find Morpeth all that cramped, and it is much nicer now it is better linked to the town centre through the new shopping centre. Haymarket is nice enough too, although the complete lack of off-stand parking is a big problem there. Haymarket is worst for arriving passengers- it is nearly always quicker to get off at Barras Bridge rather than sit in the queue to get in the bus station.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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Both of these bus stations have one thing in common: they were redeveloped to provide extra retail space, and they are more welcoming for passengers as a result.

I don't find Morpeth all that cramped, and it is much nicer now it is better linked to the town centre through the new shopping centre. Haymarket is nice enough too, although the complete lack of off-stand parking is a big problem there. Haymarket is worst for arriving passengers- it is nearly always quicker to get off at Barras Bridge rather than sit in the queue to get in the bus station.

You're quite right about the passenger experience. They are much better than what they replaced.

In respect of Morpeth, the main issue has been the actual design of the stands that causes issues for drivers, though you are also right about the issue of layover parking. Eldon Square is also similarly tricky for drivers because of approach angles etc.

Haymarket has long been a problem with a restricted number of bays, and the queueing to get into it. Still, it's better than the pre 1995 one for passengers
 

TheGrandWazoo

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As we had some mention of bad North East bus stations....

Old Haymarket
https://www.flickr.com/photos/13593...R7H-jGFzQE-ra22Ub-qfhDv7-q6SN11-ohqGpe-pbppdC

Worswick Street
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24759...b8p-4znNZg-r9snZ9-9EDwtv-uBRtnj-tHjjDZ-gUMSbU

Sunderland Central
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nedba...57X-bzF5E8-izhzyH-bmLcWm-bmLdX3-nyjW24-trjmD4

Spennymoor bus station
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jncar...HF-7EXyWG-fKwqEr-ki7e8m-q9F3br-uBHT9o-e5cPfQ/

Darlington bus station
https://www.flickr.com/photos/77751...Rvy-cHi5g9-qfEBuJ-rVHoJg-qQrUWo-hmoBfS-dWPGvA

So if you'd ever had to wait around in any of these places (and there were others like Bishop, Seaham, Consett) then you'd know how good some of the new ones are (even if they're not perfect)
 
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AndyW33

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As we had some mention of bad North East bus stations....

Worswick Street

Oh yes, I'd forgotten just how bad reverse-on bus stations were by the 1960s when nearly all single deckers were front-entrance and many doubledeckers were the same. Passengers getting fumes in the face, having to walk along oily and wet spaces between buses to board and getting dirt on their clothes from the buses either side.
Northampton Derngate (yes, the one before the awful Greyfriars) was like this. Built for 27ft rear entrance buses, we had to watch Leyland Nationals back onto some bays (rather defeating the object of one man operation) because the exhaust pipes grounded on the kerbs. A covered bus station (at least with a glass roof not a car park or shopping centre on top) incorporating a fuelling point and a bus wash, so the floor was always wet and greasy, making for plentiful skids.
 

madannie77

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As we had some mention of bad North East bus stations....

Old Haymarket
https://www.flickr.com/photos/13593...R7H-jGFzQE-ra22Ub-qfhDv7-q6SN11-ohqGpe-pbppdC

Worswick Street
https://www.flickr.com/photos/24759...b8p-4znNZg-r9snZ9-9EDwtv-uBRtnj-tHjjDZ-gUMSbU

Sunderland Central
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nedba...57X-bzF5E8-izhzyH-bmLcWm-bmLdX3-nyjW24-trjmD4

Spennymoor bus station
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jncar...HF-7EXyWG-fKwqEr-ki7e8m-q9F3br-uBHT9o-e5cPfQ/

Darlington bus station
https://www.flickr.com/photos/77751...Rvy-cHi5g9-qfEBuJ-rVHoJg-qQrUWo-hmoBfS-dWPGvA

So if you'd ever had to wait around in any of these places (and there were others like Bishop, Seaham, Consett) then you'd know how good some of the new ones are (even if they're not perfect)

No picture of the old Stanley Bus Station. Is that because you can't find one or because you think it would be cruel to inflict it on others.

Probably the worst I have ever been in, although that impression might be compounded by the town itself which seemed to be closed for business despite it being a Saturday afternoon.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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No picture of the old Stanley Bus Station. Is that because you can't find one or because you think it would be cruel to inflict it on others.

Probably the worst I have ever been in, although that impression might be compounded by the town itself which seemed to be closed for business despite it being a Saturday afternoon.

I know that Stanley wasn't good and no I can't find a decent photo (although I'll have one somewhere). However, this was worse....

https://www.flickr.com/photos/busfreakbrian/7813637570

A crime ridden muggers paradise
 

TheGrandWazoo

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Seaham Harbour was by far and away the worst:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/b-ford/2348882045/

Indeed, Seaham Harbour was some sort of dystopian vision! I didn't go there too many times and never at night thankfully.

Hartlepool Headland bus station was also a bleak place to wait for a bus. One battered bus shelter that failed to protect you from the North Sea weather and a public toilet that you just wouldn't go near.

Another spot I hated was Peterlee (Burnhope Way) which was the main boarding point prior to the bus station being built. Shivered many a time in those Stalinist bus shelters!!
 

Darandio

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Ahh, memories....

If there was anything that resembled descending into the pits of hell, Darlington bus station was it.

I seem to recall that on the entrance, there was some sort of window/display case with a model HST.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
If Spennymoor can be classified as having an old bus station, the original layout at Ferryhill was much more of a 'station' than it is now. I'm not sure whether it could be classed as good or bad though, and being my home town could mean some bias, but before the one way system around the car park it could often be a nightmare and made for some classic 'Martindales' parking!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnm...YZs-fiV6HB-8ocR9Z-cE78Cd-7qDidq-dR729x-anSpkC
 

TheGrandWazoo

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Ahh, memories....

If there was anything that resembled descending into the pits of hell, Darlington bus station was it.

I seem to recall that on the entrance, there was some sort of window/display case with a model HST.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
If Spennymoor can be classified as having an old bus station, the original layout at Ferryhill was much more of a 'station' than it is now. I'm not sure whether it could be classed as good or bad though, and being my home town could mean some bias, but before the one way system around the car park it could often be a nightmare and made for some classic 'Martindales' parking!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/johnm...YZs-fiV6HB-8ocR9Z-cE78Cd-7qDidq-dR729x-anSpkC

Cracking photo there with Martindales and I'd blocked out Ferryhill from my mind. In my youth (80s and 90s), I've spent many a while in the North East waiting in dark, miserable and bleak places!!

And not just in the North East. I guess the bar has been raised as to what we expect/are prepared to accept. However, I find it wryly amusing to see what people think is crap now, and then compare it to the dank, dark and dangerous places of my younger days whilst waiting for a brown vinyl seated National.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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You can add the former Anderston Cross Bus Station (closed in 1993) to that list:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/scottishcoachman/6576883647/

Before my time but I was in the area a couple of years ago for a trade do. Whilst walking back to my hotel just near the old bus stn, I was approached by a lady who enquired if I was looking to support small scale local commerce. I made my excuses and hurried on; I believe this was not uncommon for passengers in the past.
 

Busaholic

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Before my time but I was in the area a couple of years ago for a trade do. Whilst walking back to my hotel just near the old bus stn, I was approached by a lady who enquired if I was looking to support small scale local commerce. I made my excuses and hurried on; I believe this was not uncommon for passengers in the past.

You could have explained that due to unseasonally cold weather your support would not be forthcoming.:lol:
 

pitdiver

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I know it wasn't a Bus station but what about the old Digbeth Coach station in Birmingham
Going in there was descending in to a Black Hole. I use to work for NX and what you didn't see was a lot worse than what you did. I was always surprised that it lasted so long as NX's flagship (sic) Coach Stn. It's now long gone but certainly not missed.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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I know it wasn't a Bus station but what about the old Digbeth Coach station in Birmingham
Going in there was descending in to a Black Hole. I use to work for NX and what you didn't see was a lot worse than what you did. I was always surprised that it lasted so long as NX's flagship (sic) Coach Stn. It's now long gone but certainly not missed.

Thoroughly endorse that one too. I used to work at Vicarage Road and so used Digbeth on a number of occasions in the mid 1990s. Basically, it was just a pre-war bus depot!

Also, I'd like to remind you that it's also grim down south

Plymouth bus station - a concrete hellhole for druggies and drunks under an underpass
https://www.flickr.com/photos/richa...PLR-nHgP4U-nHgC9D-67yfcP-ieTipr-e1Hd7T-rqMHDX

Gloucester bus station - where time has stopped still and you could still be in 1975 waiting for your Bristol MW
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alanr...iN2-r7j5UR-aE2Ac4-qVDmj4-pZ1PLi-pG8zsb-qr7REB

Former Stroud bus station - now gone under a multiplex and not sadly missed
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dave3...bXY-geJoAq-axp7ft-ab4zJh-fmExve-8idZur-ag2TMi

Swindon bus station - a 1980s monstrosity of girders and glass that despite this manages to be cold and dark that even Calvin Harris would say was unacceptable
https://www.flickr.com/photos/nattm...HoQ-9rG96j-dQTBVK-8pE2o2-9fpxVx-7zs6sR-8kDK86

Over the years, the number of really bad bus stations has reduced. Whilst some have gone without replacement, many have been replaced with smaller facilities off the back of retail schemes. Whilst not perfect, I think the passenger areas are usually a lot better than those they superceded. It does make me chuckle when people complain about certain bus stations (as I compare the 5h1tholes I used to inhabit whilst waiting for a bus) but then again, the bar is being raised and what was once acceptable no longer usually is.
 
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Butts

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I know it wasn't a Bus station but what about the old Digbeth Coach station in Birmingham
Going in there was descending in to a Black Hole. I use to work for NX and what you didn't see was a lot worse than what you did. I was always surprised that it lasted so long as NX's flagship (sic) Coach Stn. It's now long gone but certainly not missed.

Are you talking about the one that was virtually underneath New Street Station opposite the "Naughty Cinema" ?

I'm sure in the eighties and early nineties Midland Red West Services used to operate out of the "pit" I am thinking of.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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Are you talking about the one that was virtually underneath New Street Station opposite the "Naughty Cinema" ?

I'm sure in the eighties and early nineties Midland Red West Services used to operate out of the "pit" I am thinking of.

That was the Bull Ring - https://www.flickr.com/photos/51738...vvj-6B1JfX-9eHJVy-qrfy9A-b16BWV-8UeMQS-5QWkGa

https://www.flickr.com/photos/79643...ZrL-8T13sr-9dZ5d6-f89nTX-pqp934-bjuCTh-iWxQtz

This was Digbeth
https://www.flickr.com/photos/58867...cxz-7mKqdh-eamS6Q-jGAEHU-7rsCMG-ikG4YL-aVZfsX

https://www.flickr.com/photos/12781...TRg-p8MG9f-4djFm2-qG8MVT-rSC6B2-e8TkZy-tBBdKJ
 

CC 72100

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pitdiver

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Wazoo, I vaguely remember the one under New Street but I was specifically referring Digbeth.
 

TheGrandWazoo

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I believe "A Danish" was also available in the said premises :p

Brilliant - I love a pastry :p
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Wazoo, I vaguely remember the one under New Street but I was specifically referring Digbeth.

I did pop up a couple of links and mentioned on an earlier post. Digbeth was basically Midland Red's Birmingham country bus depot and coach depot which was the defacto coach terminus. It was terrible and no loss!

Most of the WM ones have been greatly improved so can't think of many bad ones save the obscure ones like Bearwood or Gornal Wood. Just outside is Lichfield - that's a bit of a time warp
 

Robertj21a

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Brilliant - I love a pastry :p
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---


I did pop up a couple of links and mentioned on an earlier post. Digbeth was basically Midland Red's Birmingham country bus depot and coach depot which was the defacto coach terminus. It was terrible and no loss!

Most of the WM ones have been greatly improved so can't think of many bad ones save the obscure ones like Bearwood or Gornal Wood. Just outside is Lichfield - that's a bit of a time warp

Cannock could do with some attention/facilities.
 
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