Station revamp will speed up journeys
Perth Railway Station could be given a comprehensive revamp in order to “support faster journey times” and improve services for customers.
The project would include redevelopment of the station buildings and passenger facilities and enhancements to the tracks and platforms.
The strategy is part of Transport Scotland’s Strategic Transport Projects Review 2 (STPR2), which is taking a national overview of the transport network with a focus on each region over the next 20 years.
In the documents, published on February 3, the strategy adds that any upgrades will support active and sustainable travel alongside placemaking principles in Scotland’s seven cities to “help transform cities and neighbourhood centres”.
Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Central and Inverness railway stations have also been selected for major redevelopment works in the future.
But a potential start date and the overall cost of the works to the Perth station have not been disclosed.
The Transport Scotland report states: “At Perth Station, track and signalling infrastructure enhancements on the approaches to the station will support faster journey times and better service performance.
“This also provides the opportunity to enhance the station buildings and environs to provide an improved passenger experience (such as wayfinding, accessibility, and integration).”
The report also outlines “aspirations and aims” in its preliminary masterplans including the need to “renew signalling and track infrastructure” and provide “a robust train service while responding to passenger connectivity demands”.
The report adds the Perth station project would help reduce “excessive operating costs” and would provide “an impressive gateway” to Perthshire and the Highlands.
Perth City South ward councillor Willie Wilson said any planned improvements to Perth Railway Station would be “very welcome and long overdue”.
“This latest report is fairly high level but heads in the right direction,” he added.
“Along with track and signalling improvements we need to radically improve the customer experience.
“Far more effective use of the platforms and buildings is a must.
“Parking must be vastly increased and crucially an effective bus/rail interchange needs to be the core of the improvement plans.”
Perth City Centre ward councillor Andrew Parrott added: “The plans will represent a fundamental transformation of the railway station site to provide a greatly improved facility for the future, hopefully in the medium and not the long term.
“It is something I hugely welcome believing that we must do all we can to improve public transport opportunities in Scotland, improve their affordability and along with active travel options reduce reliance on the private car, particularly those using diesel and petrol.
“I hope very much too that in due course the PH2O project can move ahead and that this will have a dedicated link to the new station making the PH2O offering easily accessible from much of Scotland.”