HIGHWAY works linked to the £13.5million regeneration of Leicester’s St Margaret’s bus station and surrounding streets are due to get underway next week.
Work to remodel the junction of Burleys Way and Abbey Street will begin from Monday 26 July. This will see the permanent closure of the right and left turns into Abbey Street from the inner ring road.
As part of the scheme, a new super crossing will be created across Burleys Way to replace the former footbridge, which was removed last autumn. The work will also create space for wider footpaths and a new cycle track.
Work will be carried out overnight to minimise disruption to traffic and is expected to take around nine weeks to complete. Short, well-signed diversions for traffic accessing Abbey Street will be in place.
This will be the first phase of highway works carried out as part of the £13.5million St Margaret’s Gateway regeneration scheme.
Leicester City Council will build a striking new building to replace the old St Margaret’s bus station and create more attractive routes for pedestrians and cyclists as part of a major scheme to revamp this part of the city centre.
The initial stages of construction work on the new St Margaret’s Bus Station are now underway.
The new bus station building will have glazed walls and feature a curved aluminium roof that appears to float above the main concourse hall.
Bus passengers will benefit from a completely redesigned and improved internal layout with a new café, better seating, modern toilets complete with a new Changing Places accessible toilet, and real time digital passenger information. There will also be increased capacity for national and regional bus services, with the number of bays increased from 18 to 24.
Electric bus charging points will be installed, and the new building will feature secure storage for up to 150 bikes.
A series of energy efficiency and renewable energy measures will help make the new bus station a net carbon zero building. The roof will be fitted with over 750sqm of photovoltaic panels which will generate enough energy to power the new bus station and feed surplus green energy back into the grid.
Improvements to footpaths and roads next to the bus station will also take place. This will include better facilities for cyclists and pedestrians, safer crossings to soften the impact of the ring road, new landscaping and more tree planting. The work will help strengthen and improve links between key development sites and the city centre, including the new Savoy Street will provides a direct link between St Margaret and Haymarket bus stations.
City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “The new St Margaret’s bus station is an important project for Leicester and the start of its construction marks the beginning of a revival of this part of the city.
“This new investment in the St Margaret’s area will provide a huge boost for public transport, help regenerate a run down but important gateway into Leicester and help attract even more investment into the city.”
The £13.5milllion bus station redevelopment is part of the St Margaret’s Gateway regeneration project. This is supported by a £10.5million allocation from the Getting Building Fund, a pot of government funding awarded to the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP) for shovel-ready infrastructure projects to create jobs and support economic recovery across the country.
Kevin Harris, chair of the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership Ltd (LLEP) board of directors, said: “A key tenet of our Economic Growth Strategy for Leicester and Leicestershire is investment in sustainable public transport. This is in line with our ambition over the next decade to build a successful economy around the four pillars of productivity, innovation, inclusivity, and sustainability.
“St Margaret’s Gateway is a shining example of this ambition, incorporating the UK’s first carbon-neutral bus station. The improvements to the road system around the new bus station will enhance the whole area, and ensure that this project leads the way as we build the green infrastructure that is essential for a modern, thriving Leicester.”
The installation of the new building’s array of photovoltaic panels will be supported by a grant of £202,500 from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), as part of Leicester City Council’s successful bid for over £4million of match-funding to support a range of ambitious transport-related projects that aim to cut greenhouse gas emissions.
Construction of the new bus station building is expected to be complete by summer 2022.