LONDON, 2017-Jul-11 — /Travel PR News/ — Virgin Trains is supporting a multi-million pound transformation of the entrance and approach to Doncaster station.
Doncaster Council is planning to pedestrianise the forecourt outside the station, with an attractive, partially grassed area.
The transformation of this key gateway to the town is part of the council’s plans to encourage further business investment in the town and to improve its environment for residents, visitors and rail commuters.
Virgin Trains, which manages Doncaster station, plans to support the council by investing £500,000 to create a contemporary glazed canopy to provide shelter for customers accessing a new taxi rank and drop off just over 100 metres south of the entrance to the station.
The redevelopment of the station forecourt is being carried out by the council in partnership with Virgin Trains and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive. In February 2017 the council secured £7 million of Sheffield City Region funding to transform the station forecourt.
Residents, businesses and visitors to Doncaster are being asked for their views on the plans, with a number of engagement events in the coming weeks ahead of a formal submission for planning permission.
Cllr Bill Mordue, Cabinet Member for Business, Skills and Economic Development, said: “The plans we have revealed for the new station forecourt are really exciting. We have worked hard to develop these with our partners, ensuring that we take into account all users of the station. It is now time to let the residents of Doncaster have their say and input.
“We need to ensure that we get this development right because for many visitors to Doncaster, the station is the first impression they get of the town centre. This needs to be a friendly and welcoming area that residents and visitors want to come back to again and again.”
Tim Hedley-Jones, Major Projects Director for Virgin Trains on its east coast route, said: “Like Doncaster Rovers, which has recently announced Virgin Trains as its shirt sponsor for the next two years, we believe the town is going places, and we’re really pleased to work with the council to transform the forecourt of the station.
“This is an important gateway to the town, and the canopy and improvements to the forecourt could significantly enhance our customers’ experience and improve visitors’ first and last impressions of Doncaster.”
Sir Nigel Knowles, Chair of the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “This is a great development at a great time for the region. It’s exactly the right sort of move forward for our ‘let’s get it done’ work ethic – harnessing drive and ambition.”
Members of the public will be able to view the plans in more detail on:
- Thursday 13th July at Wabtec from 09.30 to 15.30
- Friday 14th July at Frenchgate Centre from 09.00 to 17.00
- Tuesday 18th July at Doncaster station forecourt from 07.00 to 10.00, and 15.00 to 18.00
For further information about the station development visit: www.doncaster.gov.uk/stationtransformation
About Virgin Trains:
Stagecoach and Virgin are working in partnership to operate the East Coast and West Coast inter-city routes under the Virgin Trains brand. Together, they are on track to revolutionise rail travel across the UK.
The combined network connects some of the nation’s most iconic destinations including Glasgow, Liverpool, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Leeds, York and London.
Virgin Trains is committed to delivering a high speed, high frequency service, offering shorter journey times, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. Customers consistently rate Virgin Trains as one of the top long-distance rail franchise operators in the National Rail Passenger Survey (NRPS) commissioned by industry watchdog, Transport Focus.
On the East Coast route, £140m is being invested to create a more personalised travel experience. We have already invested £21m to completely revamp our existing fleet and customers can now benefit from 42 additional services (22,000 extra seats) per week between Edinburgh and London. 2018 will see the introduction of completely new Azuma trains being built in the UK by Hitachi.
The West Coast route has a proud record of challenging the status quo – from introducing tilting Pendolino trains, to a pioneering automated delay repay scheme and becoming the first franchised rail operator to offer m-Tickets for all ticket types.
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Source: Virgin Trains