Milestone reached as full demolition starts on city railway station
Last week marked a historic moment for the City of Wolverhampton as machines began full demolition of the city’s railway station.
It is the next stage in delivering a £150m transport hub to provide a commercial gateway to those entering the city by national rail, bus or tram.
The scheme has been designed in two phases to ensure train services from City of Wolverhampton continue to operate as normal throughout.
British Transport Police and train staff recently moved into temporary accommodation on the nearby Banana Yard.
This paved the way for contractors Galliford Try to set up the works compound and start bringing down the former British Transport Police building, with a small section of the current station building next to Platform 1 to also be demolished.
The erection of the first section of the new station building will follow and become operational to customers by autumn 2019, when phase 2 of the programme – bringing down the remainder of the current station and completing the new build – will also start.
The new railway station to serve the city will be fully open in summer 2020.
Wolverhampton Interchange Partnership comprises City of Wolverhampton Council (CWC), Ion, West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), West Midlands Trains, Virgin Trains, Network Rail, Midland Metro Alliance, Canal & River Trust, and Black Country LEP.
Council leader and WMCA portfolio holder for transport, Cllr Roger Lawrence, said: “This is a momentous occasion for the City of Wolverhampton.
“It has been a long-held vision for the council to deliver a new railway station befitting of our great city and seeing the first bricks tumbling brings us close to that reality.
“There is £3.7bn of investment currently on site or in the pipeline across Wolverhampton.
“As part of this regeneration it is crucial visitors to our city get the best first impression possible and their travel experience is enhanced – this new state-of-the-art station will deliver that.”
Once work on the new station is completed it will pave the way for the Midland Metro Alliance to begin the final link of the new city centre tram extension. The Midland Metro Alliance is currently delivering the Pipers Row and Railway Drive phases of the extension to the railway station.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, added: “It’s fair to say that Wolverhampton has waited a long time for this new railway station and that when it is complete it will provide a suitable gateway to a thriving city.
“Just as important, the new station will be the hub of a rail, tram and bus network which will be a huge benefit to the people of Wolverhampton.
“The start of demolition work is an important milestone and I am delighted to be able to take part and equally that the West Midlands Combined Authority investment is going towards something already making progress.”
ubeagh Singh
