Something to say? This is your platform.

I write in response to Philip Haigh’s article about ‘Making Waverley Better’ ( RAIL 861).

We are pleased to have appointed ARUP to assist with the development of our station Masterplan. However, the general impression you have given about the station is inaccurate and demoralising for our staff.

The station has always suffered due to historical decisions about its positioning within the city, and it is coming under further pressure due to contemporary increases in footfall. However, our team has responded well to that.

The turning circle at the foot of the north ramp, which you have highlighted in the article, is required in order to manage deliveries to the station, not contractors’ vehicles.

While we do all we can to limit deliveries to the early hours of the morning, there are still as many as 40 vehicles using the ramp during daytime hours to deliver goods and provide services to retailers, train operators and station operators. We have been working with the local council to manage this further and open the ramp up to pedestrians.

It is simply wrong to state that cyclists cannot use the ramp. There is a dedicated cycle route on the ramp which has been in place for three years and is used by hundreds of our customers every day.

To further enhance accessibility in and out of the station, we also have a fully funded plan to install enhanced cycling and pedestrian facilities on the south ramp early next year.

In the long term, we would like to see a goods delivery system installed in the east end of the station, and to change the layout of retail facilities in order to further improve customer facilities within the station.

However, we must let the Masterplan process run its course. We always strive for the best possible passenger experience at Waverley, but we must also make long-term strategic decisions for the good of the city and our customers. I hope that RAIL will support us on this journey. Juliet Donnachie, Station Manager, Edinburgh Waverley Philip Haigh responds: Edinburgh Waverley station’s welcome for cyclists cannot be better illustrated than with this view as they approach along Waverley Bridge. The station greets them with several prominent ‘no entry’ signs and a phalanx of red lights, barriers and bollards. Yes, there is a cycle lane beyond, but the signs are clear - No Entry!

Add to this the habitual (in my experience) van parking at the bottom end of the ramp, and there’s no better showcase for the contradiction and confusion that is Waverley station. I welcome Arup’s appointment to develop a masterplan. It has much to do. Perhaps it might start with the welcome the station gives to those arriving from the city itself?