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Author Topic: Bristol Temple Meads Station redevelopment  (Read 394934 times)
Red Squirrel
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« Reply #570 on: July 24, 2019, 09:55:34 »

For years I have thought that those planning the present day road network of Bristol were bonkers, with the latest unveilings I realise we got what we got when its devised by idiots.

For the most part, the changes made to Bristol's road network since about 1990 have been positive:

* Removal of through traffic past the Cathedral;
* Removal of the dual-carriageway through the middle of Queen Square;
* Removal of much through traffic from The Centre;
* Removal of Redcliffe Flyover.

The one scheme most people agree was aberrant was the Temple Circus Gyratory which replaced Redcliffe Flyover. Wise heads at the time said that a crossroads arrangement would make more sense, but possibly due to a failure of nerve they were over-ruled. Now, at last, we are getting one. I would agree that the positioning of the MetroBus stops is surprisingly inconvenient, but that is just one aspect (albeit an important one) of what is otherwise a huge improvement.
« Last Edit: July 24, 2019, 11:26:02 by Red Squirrel » Logged

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Bmblbzzz
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« Reply #571 on: July 24, 2019, 11:14:24 »

A lot of people seem to, or say they, miss the flyover. It was a feature of the city (an ugly one IMO (in my opinion), although quite fun to use). The most dramatic of the improvements listed by RS above has to be (IMO) the transformation of Queen Square from an urban motorway to an extremely pleasant area of both leisure and work.
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WelshBluebird
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« Reply #572 on: July 24, 2019, 11:41:08 »

Having only known Queen Square it as it is today, I am totally bamboozled by the pictures of it with a dual carriageway running through the centre of it! Utter madness. Of course, there is an element of it being "of the time" as in that era, and especially in Bristol, the car was king. But it still totally baffles me that anyone thought that was a good idea.
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Bmblbzzz
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« Reply #573 on: July 24, 2019, 11:44:25 »

"That time" was the 1930s, in this case.
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« Reply #574 on: July 25, 2019, 16:31:37 »

"That time" was the 1930s, in this case.

Indeed, as part of the larger inner circuit road - don't think that the only municipal philistinism was postwar, plenty of it prewar - the Portway dates back to 1926, during which time all sorts of other interesting stuff was demolished. 

Also, don't forget that not only did Queens' Square have road running through the middle, but the sides of the square were used as a bus park. Amazing that as much remains as it does really.

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Red Squirrel
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« Reply #575 on: August 18, 2019, 17:03:19 »

And here's an announcement from Network Rail about having put in that water fountain, and similar stuff, to the tune of £1M. While it includes things both done and not yet done at Reading and Paddington, the biggest item is:
Quote
In the next year work will begin on a new roof at the station which will enable the continued safe running of the station and more than 150 new seats will be installed.

Not quite sure how to read that...

I spotted the new seats the other day - very happy to report that they are not the appalling bum-freezer/cheese grater style metal seats that blight many a station, but proper cast-iron-and-wood benches complete with 30s-style GWR (Great Western Railway) roundels. NR» (Network Rail - home page) deserve 11/10 for this - they are, in every way, perfect!
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« Reply #576 on: August 19, 2019, 07:15:39 »

It's actually a combination of the two - there are quite a few new 'cheese grater' benches too. I don't know why it's taken them so long to install these new benches - the wooden ones have been stacked up in the service tunnel for years. They've also put notices on the new benches, announcing the fact that they've installed new benches. Well yes, we can see that!
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Bmblbzzz
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« Reply #577 on: August 19, 2019, 09:25:40 »

"If you notice this notice, you will notice it's not worth noticing."
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TonyK
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« Reply #578 on: August 20, 2019, 17:51:19 »

"If you notice this notice, you will notice it's not worth noticing."

Or, as they say in Yukon Territory:

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Now, please!
johnneyw
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« Reply #579 on: August 20, 2019, 17:58:19 »

And for the more officious local authority officer!
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Red Squirrel
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« Reply #580 on: August 24, 2019, 18:17:08 »

And here's an announcement from Network Rail about having put in that water fountain, and similar stuff, to the tune of £1M. While it includes things both done and not yet done at Reading and Paddington, the biggest item is:
Quote
In the next year work will begin on a new roof at the station which will enable the continued safe running of the station and more than 150 new seats will be installed.

Not quite sure how to read that...

I spotted the new seats the other day - very happy to report that they are not the appalling bum-freezer/cheese grater style metal seats that blight many a station, but proper cast-iron-and-wood benches complete with 30s-style GWR (Great Western Railway) roundels. NR» (Network Rail - home page) deserve 11/10 for this - they are, in every way, perfect!

I've attached an image of one of the new benches, with affixed notice:
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« Reply #581 on: September 03, 2019, 07:13:54 »

I've attached an image of one of the new benches, with affixed notice:

Did the other side of the notice read "Wet Paint"?
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IndustryInsider
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« Reply #582 on: September 03, 2019, 09:32:21 »

Similar signs at Reading on the new seating installed on the platforms there.  A very different design of seat to the one pictured above in Bristol, to match the modern design of the station.
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« Reply #583 on: September 03, 2019, 10:57:18 »

On a similar theme Weston station has also had new seats installed.
Nothing too special about that except they seem to have been made to measure as they are all different lengths fitting into specific areas
They have one bench that literally is only big enough for two people  Grin
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Red Squirrel
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« Reply #584 on: November 28, 2019, 11:47:59 »

I went along to a meeting at Mott MacDonald the other day, reviewing the current status of the upgrade plan for Temple Meads. You'll see something very similar to this on the new FOSBR (Friends of Suburban Bristol Railways) website when it goes live, but for now here's my report!

New main entrance

Perhaps the biggest change in these proposals is to the main entrance. The current entrance at the top of the station incline is cramped and confusing, with arriving and departing passengers crossing paths with people buying tickets, and little opportunity to add retail outlets. Perhaps surprisingly, 60% of station users already enter through the northern entrance – the narrow path across the front of the Midland shed. If the plans go ahead, this will become the main entrance.

The Midland Shed looks set to become a foyer for the station. Platforms 0 and 1, on the site of the current Signal Box, will be extended to about the point where the path currently crosses, thus avoiding the need for a subway or bridge to cross these tracks.

Eastern entrance

There was not much detail as to how the eastern entrance, giving access to the University development on the old Post Office site, will work. It was clear that this will not be a right of way, but purely an entrance to the station. The artist’s impression also showed a footbridge linking the platforms outside the main train shed; apparently this may be required in future to boost the capacity of the subway.

Buses

Terminating buses will be moved from the station incline to the Friary. This caused raised eyebrows at the meeting, because the new, nearly complete road scheme at Temple Gate may not accommodate this very well.

Parking

Cycle parking will be ‘decanted’, first to a temporary containerised facility at Friary and then later to a high quality cycle hub capable of accommodating 800 to 1000 bikes.

A new multistory car park (with cycle parking) on the southern side of the River Avon will replace all the staff and public car parking in the Midland Shed area, on the incline and in the current Temple Gate multistory. A path along the current Fish Dock siding will allow quick, easy, level access into the southern end of the station.

The pedestrian area in front of the (current) main entrance is to be extended, moving vehicles further away from the station building. The only private car parking retained here will be for disabled users.

Taxis will continue to use the Incline. This drew criticism from a representative of the taxi drivers, who felt that taxis and buses should be in the same place.

Retail

Retail is a very important aspect of major modern stations. Station retail is one of the few areas in the sector that is still experiencing growth, and it is recognised that Temple Meads currently has a very poor offer. These plans allow much scope for extending retail here, but it is also recognised that this needs to reflect Bristol’s special ‘independent’ streak – so units will be fitted out at a level which will appeal to independents.

Accessibility

The main criticism of accessibility concerned the distances between modes. People arriving by train who wish to travel on to places such as Wells or Cheddar, for example, will need to go at least 250m to reach their bus at Temple Gate. Even local terminating buses will be over 100m from the station.
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