Morgan Sindall Construction has started work on a £13.5 million rebuild of Leicester’s St Margaret’s bus station and some of the routes around it.
The construction group has been brought in by Leicester City Council to oversee work creating a new building to replace the old bus station and create more attractive routes for pedestrians and cyclists.
The new bus station building will have glazed walls and feature a curved aluminium roof that appears to float above the main concourse hall.
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Bus passengers will benefit from a new café, better seating, modern toilets complete with a new 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.
Energy efficiency and renewable energy measures – helping make the new bus station a net carbon zero building – will include photovoltaic panels which will power the bus station and feed surplus green energy back into the grid.
Improvements to footpaths and roads will include safer crossings to “soften” the impact of the ring road, new landscaping and more tree planting.
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The work will help strengthen and improve links between key development sites and the city centre, including the new Savoy Street which will provide a direct link between St Margaret and the nearby Haymarket bus station.
Richard Frape, project director at Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “The new station will make a real impact on the lives of people in Leicester.
“It will improve commutes while also creating better transport connections with other parts of the 海角视频 – all whilst reducing carbon emissions through the use of electric buses.
“In addition, footpath improvements, safer crossings for cyclists and pedestrians and storage for 150 bikes, will all support active transport methods.
“Leicester City Council is a long-term customer and we’ve worked hand-in-glove with them to design a bus station which will help meet the council’s net-zero carbon target and encourage people to use greener and cleaner transport.
“As with all our projects, we look forward to boosting the local economy by utilising skilled local suppliers wherever possible.”
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.
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“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 award of over £10 million of government funding is a huge endorsement of the importance of this scheme and we’re very pleased to have Morgan Sindall Construction on board as lead contractors on this exciting development.”
The £13.5 million bus station redevelopment is part of the St Margaret’s Gateway regeneration project, and has been supported by a £10.5 million 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.
LLEP chairman Kevin Harris said: “St Margaret’s Gateway is a significant investment in the future of Leicester, and I’m very pleased that the LLEP has been able to support it via our Getting Building Fund allocation.
“A major regeneration project at one of the key gateways to the city, the new bus station and improvements to the surrounding roads will be a great benefit to the local economy, creating jobs and connecting Leicester to the wider county and the rest of the 海角视频.
“The building’s carbon neutrality is a major boost to our goal of a net-zero Leicester and Leicestershire, and it’s great to see new investment in the green infrastructure of the future.”
All that now remains of the original bus station building is the partial steelwork frame which will be reused in the new construction, in line with the eco-standards of the project.
Deputy city mayor for environment and transportation Coun Adam Clarke said: “These exciting plans to replace St Margaret’s Bus Station with a striking, new and net-zero carbon building represents an ambitious and important step forwards in our efforts to become a carbon neutral and climate adapted city by 2030.
“It shows our commitment to decarbonising buildings and will build on our work to promote sustainable transport and support bus operators to convert to low emission fleets. In many ways this new carbon neutral bus station building will be a flagship for what we are striving to achieve in Leicester.”
Construction of the new bus station building is expected to be complete by summer 2022.
Morgan Sindall Construction has previously worked with the city council on the delivery of the award-winning King Richard III Visitor Centre.
More recently, it led construction for local developers Charles Street Buildings on £50 million of mixed-use developments and infrastructure upgrades close to Leicester city centre, off Vaughan Way, including two hotels of six and 10 storeys, 35,000 sq ft of office space and a new public realm called Great Central Square.