January 9, 2015 3.14 pm
This story is over 90 months old
Plans for £25m transport hub to regenerate Lincoln city centre
Public consultation: Plans have been revealed for the first time outlining a new £25 million transport hub in Lincoln city centre.
Leader of the City of Lincoln Council Ric Metcalfe, Angela Andrews, acting chief executive sponsoring the project from the corporate management team, Councillor Neil Murray, the city council’s Portfolio Holder for Planning Policy and Economic Regeneration and Assistant Director for Planning and Regeneration Kate Ellis. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Plans for a £25 million transport hub in the centre of Lincoln have been revealed, including a new bus and train station, a 1,000 space car park and new pedestrian footbridges.
The scheme would be led by the City of Lincoln Council in partnership with Lincolnshire Co-op and Network Rail, working with East Midlands Trains and Lincolnshire County Council.
Subject to planning consent and the acquirement of extra funding, work is planned to start on the site in September 2016 and be constructed within two and a half years.
The site plan for the new Lincoln Transport Hub.
The project would involve demolishing the existing outdated bus station and building a new fit-for-purpose facility next to the train station – also earmarked for upgrades.
The bus station is currently used by 30,000 people per day and around 7 million a year.
Both the pedestrian footbridge and platform footbridge over the railway would also be demolished, to be replaced by a dual function footbridge between Tentercroft Street and St Mary’s Street.
The footbridges would provide connections onto the railway station platforms, access to the new bus station and improving links between the north and south of the city centre.
A new multi-storey car park – with space for 1,000 vehicles and pay on exit facilities – would be built on the site of the current bus station, supporting the hub and the high street.
There will be additional benefits for cyclists, including cycle spaces and lanes.
The city council say 30% of the construction costs and 20% of the labour would be from within 10 miles of Lincoln.
Councillor Ric Metcalfe, Leader of the city council, said: “This is a huge scheme that would bring equally huge benefits to all who live and work in Lincoln, and importantly to those who visit the city and invest in it as well.
“As a council we want to ensure the vitality of our city centre. A transport interchange in the heart of the city, serving residents, businesses and visitors, will not only regenerate the area but is key to achieving the growth the city needs.”
Kate Ellis, Assistant Director for Planning and Regeneration at the City of Lincoln Council, said: “Once Lincoln has a new fit-for-purpose bus station that people actually feel safe using then I think we’ll see more busses put on and more evening services.
“We’re also looking at the design of the bus station to make it easier for people to know where the hub is.
“When we do get more direct trains and improved services both to Nottingham and to London that passenger increase will gradually start to feed through.”
MP for Lincoln Karl McCartney added: “It is, of course, also a priority that we do all we can to improve our transport system so that we continue to encourage more visitors to Lincoln and the money they bring with them that supports our local shops, tourist attractions and jobs.
“It is a pity this was not done ahead of the Magna Carta’s 800th Anniversary celebrations this year, but I am continuing to work to bring together representatives of organisations and businesses to seek to enhance and facilitate improvements to our city and its hinterland.”
The regeration area of Lincoln, in which multiple developments are underway and planned for.
Funding the first phase
On January 19 City of Lincoln Council’s Executive will be asked to support the development of the scheme by committing a further £760,470 of capital funds to allow a planning application to be submitted.
If the additional funding is agreed by the Executive it will bring the total committed to the project to £1.3 million.
This will be followed by a four-week public consultation from January 26, during which the city council is asking for feedback and hosting drop-in sessions.
In early 2014, the project received £11 million indicative funding through the Single Local Growth Fund from the Department for Transport, from the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership.
The remainder of the funding would come from other project partners.
The transport hub plans were revealed for the first time on Friday, January 9. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Angela Andrews, acting chief executive sponsoring the project from the corporate management team: “This is a huge project for the city council both financially and organisationally.
“As yet we haven’t contracted for the pricing for this so we have estimated around £25 million for all the elements of this scheme.
“There will be some public funds going into the project potentially from ourselves and the county council but the private and the LEP funding.
“The four-week public consultation starts on January 26 so the public and others of the existing bus station and rail users will be able to influence what they think it should be.”
Disruption expected
The city council say there would be some disruption during the construction of the different elements of the scheme and commuters, residents and visitors will be made aware of possible road closures.
The existing bus station will continue to operate as normal while construction is ongoing and bus services will not be affected.
Similarly, the train station will continue to operate but there will be disruptions to services once the footbridges are underway.
There would be some loss of car parking spaces at Thornbridge roof top car park, above the bus station, until the new multi-storey is built.
Kate Ellis added: “We have to do the bus station first on the site that’s used by Network Rail for its operation and its customer car park. Those using the train station will park at the Tentercroft Street car park.
Kate Ellis, Assistant Director for Planning and Regeneration at the City of Lincoln Council. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
“Once that’s up and capable of being operated then that enables us to demolish the existing station to make way for the multi-storey car park. The new footbridges will also be completed in the early stages.
“Highway improvements will be put in alongside the development of the bus station. There is bound to be disruption but because by this time the East West Link Road will be completed it means people will have an alternative route.”
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Anglian Water has “a lot to answer for” after a long-running sinkhole debacle, Holbeach’s MP has claimed.
Nearly £500,000 has been spent over the last three years by various authorities attempting to repair the hole on Boston Road South.
People whose lives had been disrupted demanded answers from the water company and council at a town meeting on Wednesday evening.
The delayed sewer works have now been completed, and the road repairs are currently expected to be completed by Friday, August 26.
Most of the anger was directed against Anglian Water for not keeping people informed of what was happening.
Sir John Hayes, MP for South Holland and the Deepings, said: “There has been a breakdown between Lincolnshire County Council. Local people have been put out. Anglian Water have a lot to answer for,” he said.
“It is not acceptable that the people I represent have had to have this since 2019. This cost is our money.
Problems have persisted on Boston Road South for years | Photo: The Lincolnite
“It is not acceptable people not knowing what is happening next. There is also the noise which is affecting people’s lives.
“Only Lincolnshire County Council are taking responsibility and not Anglian Water. People will know who to hold accountable.”
He also called for people to be compensated for their trouble as a gesture of goodwill.
Anglian Water said they were very sorry for not communicating better, and claimed that they had been working closely with the council to fix the problems.
A spokesperson said they would look into compensation.
One resident told the meeting that they hadn’t been informed about recent roadworks, and hadn’t been able to get off their drive for work on Monday.
Lincolnshire County Council apologised for not dropping letters off to all houses affected.
Questions also revealed that tankers full of sewage and storm water were being taken away from the sinkhole daily.
Anglian Water has spent approximately £350,000 trying to rectify the problem, and another £115,000 has come from Lincolnshire County Council.
The road repairs were pushed back from July 4 after Anglian Water said that more time was needed to repair the sewer.
A former pub in Boston will be merged with a neighbouring building to create larger residential home.
Plans have been granted for a new use for the Red Cow Hotel on Wide Bargate.
The pub has had a turbulent history recently, briefly closing and reopening in 2014, before shutting again shortly after.
Planning documents say it’s fallen into a poor sate of repair. However, applicant SHWilkinson Architects Ltd is now working to bring it back into good condition.
Boston Borough Council has granted permission to build a two-storey extension to link it with the Georgians, an 18th century townhouse used as a care home for the elderly.
The extension will be set back from the road so it doesn’t detract from the historic architecture.
Artists impressions show what the larger, combined care home would look like.
The extended care home on Wide Bargate, Boston Photo: SHWilkinson
The recently-approved application states: “The link will allow both buildings to operate under a combined management and staffing rather than two independent staffing units, were they kept separate.”
It adds that the plans are an “opportunity to bring the derelict and deteriorating building back into use and to address localised issues with vermin appearance.”
The buildings’ external features will be restored and replaced where needed.