Full steam ahead for station facelift
8:53am Thursday 29th July 2010 in News
Full steam ahead for station facelift
work is due to start on a £4 million revamp of Bolton Station.
The project — which has been funded through the Department for Transport’s National Stations Improvement Programme and the Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority —will see platform facilities and the station entrance completely overhauled.
The existing booking office, travel centre and shop will be stripped, as well as the toilet block and redundant parcels office.
The internal walls will be removed to allow for a new layout to incorporate a ticket office with four positions, one of which will be for wheelchair users.
There will also be a new shop and café.
At platform level, the café will have a new conservatory front and the canopies will be extended to protect passengers from the elements at the northern end of platform four and the combined platforms one and three.
This will allow the train stopping point to be moved nearer to the foot of the stairs to reduce the walking distance for passengers.
There will be new lighting in existing waiting rooms, information screens and public-address speakers, flooring will be replaced and the walls and ceilings painted.
The existing toilets on both main platforms will be gutted and re-fitted with new fixtures and fittings, including disabled and babychange facilities.
Network Rail route director Jo Kaye said: “Our work at Bolton underlines Network Rail’s commitment to improving station facilities for passengers.
“This value-for-money scheme will entice people on to the railway, connecting them with jobs throughout the area.”
Cllr Ian Macdonald, chairman of the Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority, said: “The new facilities will no doubt also encourage even more people to travel by train. So, allied to the plans for a new bus station next to the railway station, this is great news for Bolton and I am delighted that work will soon be getting under way.”
New cycle stands will also be installed at the ends of platforms one, three and four, and existing cycle cabinets will be moved to the same positions.
Work is expected to be completed by the end of next summer.
