Network Rail recently displayed results from their Passengers Insight survey at a collaborative strategy Public Showcase event hosted by Highland Council.
As part of ongoing work on the Inverness Station Masterplan, HITRANS has appointed architectural design consultants Austin-Smith: Lord to undertake feasibility work into the potential relocation of Inverness bus station and the reconstruction of the Rose Street multi-storey car park.
HITRANS has been working on the possibility of the bus and train stations being brought together for more than a decade. With money from Transport Scotland, Network Rail has already bought numerous nearby sites.
The prospect of shifting the current bus station in Farraline Park and the Rose Street multi-storey car park opens up the possibility of creating a new green or civic space there.
Highland Council plans to transform the city centre, enhancing its public realm and its reputation as a destination, a desirable place to live and as a regional centre for business, educational, retail and commercial activities. It hopes that the Station Masterplan project can identify a range of short, medium and longer term options for the station and the vital role it plays in the city centre and for the wider region.”
Parking and active travel will also be key considerations for the new interchange.
Current work at the railway station involves a major refurbishment of the staff facilities, resulting in the main station car park being closed to the public for an extended period of 6 months. Rail staff and BTP have been able to park their vehicles in the car park while it was closed. Access has been maintained for pedestrians and cyclists using a double deck cycle rack.
A nearby alternative car park with significant capacity is the Rose Street multi-storey, but this has hundreds of spaces closed off for structural maintenance reasons. A proper solution is needed in the medium term and will be addressed in the feasibility study.
The existing bus station is busy and congested, with more and more bus and coach operators using stances which were designed for fewer and smaller vehicles. There has been resulting damage to kerbs and vehicles, street furniture and shelters. When buses have to reverse out of the rear of the stances, conflict hazards include a surrounding public road with live traffic and a lack of pedestrian segregation. There are various trip hazards, especially where buses have difficulty lining up their doorways with high kerbs on the stances.
Stagecoach have recognised the need to carry out work in the short term to modify the stances on the existing site at Farraline Park. An amended layout will better suit 15 metre long coaches, and will also enable disabled access consistent with PSVAR accessibility requirements on buses and coaches generally.
No fixed dates for completion of the overall project have been offered by any of the partners involved, so major upgrades to the sometimes crowded passenger experience at Inverness Station may not be visible for some time.
