New station entrances included in £95m Bristol redevelopment plan
NETWORK Rail has revealed a £95m regeneration of Bristol’s Temple quarter is expected to result in three new or significantly improved entrances for the north, south, and east of Bristol’s Grade 1 listed Temple Meads station.
Network Rail is in a partnership with the West of England Combined Authority, Bristol City Council and Homes England who will bring forward the regeneration of approximately 130 hectares of brownfield land.
Claimed to be the city’s biggest regeneration project, it aims to deliver up to 10,000 homes and 22,000 jobs in a series of new sustainable and inclusive communities. The funding will unlock the first phase of this scheme and future plans will lead to the development of 57 hectares of land across St Philip’s Marsh in phase two.
Focussing on a deprived area of Bristol, the scheme will provide new affordable homes, generating skills, training, and employment opportunities while improving transport, boosting regional productivity and economic growth.
The new entrances will mean that the station no longer severs the connections between neighbouring areas but connects them instead. The new eastern entrance to Bristol Temple Meads will make it much easier to reach the station from surrounding neighbourhoods and will create a link to the new university campus.
There are plans for a multistorey car park and a new transport hub which will link up the railway with connections for pedestrians, cyclists and the local and citywide bus network.
Last year a £132m track and signalling upgrade was completed, and the roof at the station is currently being refurbished.