new Coventry station plans

[OwlMan]

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/revealed-first-look-82m-coventry-12498279

An £82m scheme to redevelop Coventry railway station looks set to be given the green light by councillors today - even though the cost has increased by £11m.
The Coventry railway station masterplan has been in the pipeline for some time and is part of a raft of major developments to regenerate the city centre.
If approved at today’s full council meeting the wheels will be put in motion for the scheme to proceed, with a likely start date of 2019 and completion by 2021.
The scheme would not proceed until all funding has been secured, from a variety of sources, though £27.4m has already been allocated by Coventry City Council towards the project, with a further £1m made available for specific parts of it.
A report to today’s full council meeting said the scheme would “deliver extra capacity, accessibility and a better first impression of Coventry”.
The scheme proposes:.......................................

 

[nuneatonmark]

I wonder when exactly the new bay will be completed as part of this development? At least 2019, maybe 2021? A far cry from the 2017 a Coventry councilor said on the opening of Coventry Arena station!

 

[boxy321]

I wonder when exactly the new bay will be completed as part of this development? At least 2019, maybe 2021? A far cry from the 2017 a Coventry councilor said on the opening of Coventry Arena station!

Work's progressing slowly since it's going under a rather busy open road and next to a rather busy open railway line! Seems they've done half of it and are now working on under the city-bound section.

 

[xc170]

They need to flatten it and start from scratch.

How Coventry station became a listed building I don't know.

 

[scott118]

They need to flatten it and start from scratch.

How Coventry station became a listed building I don't know.

.... didn't Adolf have a good go at doing that, back in the 40's?

 

[Mikey C]

They need to flatten it and start from scratch.

How Coventry station became a listed building I don't know.

I don't mind the existing building actually, there are FAR worse buildings in Coventry that need demolishing first!

 

[MidnightFlyer]

Indeed, I actually like a lot of the 1960s architecture on the WCML, including Coventry. Much like Euston off-peak, the concourse I find to be quite open and airy and does its job reasonably well.

 

[Steelwheels]

I feel that station feels as though it is built backwards and having to cross a busy car park to use the bus interchange is not ideal in an age for wheelchair/buggy access.

 

[yorksrob]

Architectually I've always liked Coventry station. The buildings all match and are quite stylish. Shame they can't work with this modern classic.

 

[OwlMan]

update
http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/11m-extra-rising-cost-redeveloping-12501601

The original plans were set to cost £71m but the price has rocketed to more than £82m
Redeveloping Coventry’s railway station to give people a better first impression of the city will cost an extra £11million.
Councillors have given the multi-million pound plan the green light after the extra cash was added to the initial cost of £71m.

Now approved, the £82.4m scheme will start in 2019 and rail passengers will see the much needed makeover for the ageing station completed by 2021. Speaking at full council meeting this afternoon Cllr Jim O’Boyle, cabinet member for jobs and regeneration, said: “The station by any stretch of the imagination needs some improvement.

“Since it was built in the 60s it hasn’t seen any real improvement.”
The city council is providing around £30m and more money is being sought from other sources, including the West Midlands Combined Authority.
The council has said the scheme will not go forward until all funding has been secured.
The scheme proposes building a second station entrance building facing Warwick Road and providing step free access to platforms.
There would also be five new shops, a second fully glazed footbridge connecting all four platforms and extended platform canopies, a 644-space multi-storey car park to the east of Warwick Road, and a bus interchange connected directly to the station building via a new access tunnel under Warwick Road.
A new bay platform to link with NUCKLE (the planned Nuneaton, Kenilworth to Leamington service) to allow better services to Nuneaton and the Ricoh Arena would also be built.
The plans also look to make road improvements – including a new link road to link to Central Six and the ring road and another to link to the new car park.
Council leader Cllr George Duggins said he wants the station to be a gateway to the city and stated that “first impressions are always important.”
Coventry station is the fastest growing outside London and is the most used outside of London and Birmingham New Street.

More than six million passenger trips a year are made at the station and it is due to rise to 7.5m in the next seven years.

Cllr O’Boyle added: “Our city is changing and we need a station that will match our hopes and ambitions and show people what a wonderful place Coventry is.”

 

[Cherry_Picker]

Coventry station is the fastest growing outside London and is the most used outside of London and Birmingham New Street.

I know the counsellor in question loves Coventry and everything but that's a hell of an inaccurate claim.

 

[TheDavibob]

I know the counsellor in question loves Coventry and everything but that's a hell of an inaccurate claim.

You can construct a reasonable argument over fastest growing station (it isn't, but it received a large boost to an already large usage in the past year) though Watford Junction would trounce it on any direct comparable measure.

I have absolutely no idea where the second claim comes from -- even looking at the WCML it sits beneath a variety of other city stations and the aforementioned Watford. I'd quite like to see what the reasoning for this claim actually is.

 

[Mikey C]

Cllr O’Boyle added: “Our city is changing and we need a station that will match our hopes and ambitions and show people what a wonderful place Coventry is.”

Get rid of/bury the ring road, that would make much more of a difference! Demolishing the hideous Britannia in the centre would help too

 

[EbbwJunction1]

I've been there a couple of times recently, and I was quite impressed by the concourse area.

The platforms are okay, although a little narrow in places, but there's not a lot they can do about them. The footbridge could do with a revamp, as there's no stairs to platforms two and three - or if there are, they're hidden very well!

I'm quite confused about what the development outside the station actually is. There's a lot of land there, and one building is under way, but what's happening with the rest of it? If they're not careful, they'll hide the station behind tall office blocks and severely damage the access by restricting it to narrow corridors between the buildings.

The other problem, and I know there's absolutely nothing they can do about it, is that it's quite a trek on foot from the station to the centre of the city. There's a pretty good bus link, but unless you know where you're going, it looks quite easy to get off on the wrong stop and have to walk quite a long way to get to where you want to go.

 

[takno]

Get rid of/bury the ring road, that would make much more of a difference! Demolishing the hideous Britannia in the centre would help too

That looks okay to me. Needs a bit of a clean, get rid of the nasty banners draped on it and remove the completely inappropriate sign. The building to the left of the picture is far uglier.

 

[TomJ93]

I've been there a couple of times recently, and I was quite impressed by the concourse area.

The platforms are okay, although a little narrow in places, but there's not a lot they can do about them. The footbridge could do with a revamp, as there's no stairs to platforms two and three - or if there are, they're hidden very well!

I'm quite confused about what the development outside the station actually is. There's a lot of land there, and one building is under way, but what's happening with the rest of it? If they're not careful, they'll hide the station behind tall office blocks and severely damage the access by restricting it to narrow corridors between the buildings.

The other problem, and I know there's absolutely nothing they can do about it, is that it's quite a trek on foot from the station to the centre of the city. There's a pretty good bus link, but unless you know where you're going, it looks quite easy to get off on the wrong stop and have to walk quite a long way to get to where you want to go.

Are you going up on the lift? Through the ticket barriers and left straight away takes you to the main footbridge which has stairs to all platforms.

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Are you going up on the lift? Through the ticket barriers and left straight away takes you to the main footbridge which has stairs to all platforms.

I should really have said that I did find them, but at one place it looks as if they've been removed and the gap boarded up.

 

[6Gman]

They need to flatten it and start from scratch.

How Coventry station became a listed building I don't know.

Coventry was* a lovely station. How many other station buffets included a goldfish pond?


* Haven't been there for a few years so I suppose they may have messed it about in my absence.

 

[EbbwJunction1]

Coventry was a lovely station. How many other station buffets included a goldfish pond?

Sadly, someone's cat ate the goldfish a few years ago ..... sorry!

(I'll get my coat!)

 

[paulb1973]

Sadly, someone's cat ate the goldfish a few years ago ..... sorry!

(I'll get my coat!)

The pond is still there I think (its my local station I should know really). but the fish have gone.

 

[boxy321]

That looks okay to me. Needs a bit of a clean, get rid of the nasty banners draped on it and remove the completely inappropriate sign. The building to the left of the picture is far uglier.

The Brittania is getting a facelift shortly. I would rather it be knocked down though.

Regarding access, the current temporary bus stops and frontage should hopefully chage hugely as it's now a mess.