Station woes pile up ...

As a comment on the state of Sunderland’s train station, a pile of foul smelling human waste on the platform speaks louder than words.

There have been many brickbats thrown in the direction of the city’s station, but the sewage leak which saw faeces lying in puddles is, for the harshest of critics, the perfect metaphor.

And Sunderland Central MP Julie Elliott, who brought the incident to light, has been one of the harshest.

The sewage has thankfully been cleared up, but there’s still a bad smell lingering in the air.

This station is in desperate need of attention.

Visually, the station is as underwhelming a welcome as you could get to a city.

It was once memorably described as a ‘joyless dungeon’ ... and that was in it’s heyday.

Today, the station jars with the many efforts to big up the city, particularly as we vied for City of Culture status.

What sticks in the craw, however, is that we have been promised action for some time.

Five years ago, plans were unveiled for a £13million transformation of the station.

But rather than a highspeed arrival, we’re left standing on the platform plodging in unmentionable.

We have fantastic events lined up for Sunderland with the pick of the crop the Tall Ships Race, which will see thousands descending on the city from all over the UK and beyond.

For those arriving by train, the ugly, tired eyesore of a station is as welcoming as number twos on the platform floor.

The sooner work begins on the station the better.

The mess may have been cleared up, but the bad smell still lingers.