First look at plans for Leeds Station entry rebuild

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Detailed plans to completely rebuild the area around Leeds City Station have been submitted to planning chiefs.

Blueprints include revamping Bishopgate Street, completely removing traffic from New Station Street and improving pedestrian access to the station.

Early plans were discussed by the authority’s city plans panel in January, where it was claimed the new designs would include ‘sweeping steps’ and ‘generously-sized lifts’.

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Detailed blueprints, known as a design and access statement, were published on Monday and include updated artist impressions of the work set to take place.

Plans for a traffic-free New Station Street.Plans for a traffic-free New Station Street.
Plans for a traffic-free New Station Street. | other

Plans include new stairs access and the pedestrianisation of New Station Street, which currently houses a taxi rank.

Other changes include ‘enhanced pedestrian and cycle-friendly routes’ through Neville Street, Dark Neville Street and Victoria Road, as well as a new 700-capacity ‘cycle hub’.

Proposals also include installation of a new access lift between Bishopgate Street and the station.

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The document states: “Leeds City Station is one of the busiest stations in the North of England with passenger numbers set to increase over the next 20 years. The majority of passengers enter / exit the station via the entrance on the south concourse. They head along New Station Street and into the city centre.

Dark Neville Street will be given extra cycle access.Dark Neville Street will be given extra cycle access.
Dark Neville Street will be given extra cycle access. | other

“New Station Street is densely populated with waiting taxis, buses and service deliveries to businesses lining the street. Free flowing pedestrian footways, cycle movement and connectivity to other modes of transport can often be constrained due to the proximity of these functions in a relatively confined area. There is no passenger lift at the entrance of the station to safely, and promptly, transfer members of the public to and from Bishopgate Street.

“The project seeks to address issues of accessibility and connectivity, enabling free flowing pedestrian and cycle movement from the station’s southern environs to Dark Neville Street, Neville Street, Bishopgate Street, and then into the city centre and the wider Leeds street network. The Project is part of a wider programme of transformational transport initiatives to be delivered across Leeds that aim to reduce vehicle usage within the city

centre.

“The works are designed to encourage a modal shift towards sustainable forms of transport by creating user friendly spaces that support opportunities for cycling, walking and connectivity to other forms of transport. The project will also support the city council’s climate emergency agenda.”

Bishopgate Street will be given new access to the station entrance.Bishopgate Street will be given new access to the station entrance.
Bishopgate Street will be given new access to the station entrance. | other

So what can we expect?

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- Pedestrianising New Station Street – The report claims an expected increase in the number of passengers using Leeds Station will increase traffic congestion on New Station street. It proposes, therefore, to pedestrianise the street to ‘remove the constraints caused by the close proximity of pedestrians and vehicle movement’.

- Pedestrian lifts from Bishopgate – The installation of two large passenger lifts to connect the station to Bishopgate at street level will, the report claims, ‘significantly improve accessibility to the station’.

- Taxi pick-up rank on Bishopgate Street – Suitable for a minimum of six waiting vehicles. The rank would be covered with a glazed shelter, with seating for 15 people.

- Changes to the multi-modal transport interchange – In plain English, this means making it easier for people to quickly go between different methods of travel, such as taxis, buses, bicycles and on foot .

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- Complete reconstruction of the public area outside the station entrance – This would include the installation of a series of wide steps connecting New Station Street and Bishopgate which, it claims, will improve connections to the city’s south bank.

- Transform the public realm around Leeds Station main entrance – the report claims this would create a ‘safer, more attractive environment for people to use and enjoy and to increase visibility of the station entrance from surrounding areas’.

The plans are set to be discussed by the authority’s City Plans Panel, but due to Covid-19 restrictions, it is unclear as to when this will be.

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