Interchange woe leads to rethink 'world class gateway' plan

The recently demolished NCP car park was due to be replaced by a tree-lined concourse leading to Bradford Interchange, and acting as an impressive welcome to people arriving into the city centre by bus or train.

But the ongoing saga of the bus station section of the Interchange means that concourse is not possible until there is more clarity about the station’s future.

Yesterday, new plans for sections of the Interchange and the NCP site were revealed by Bradford Council and West Yorkshire Combined Authority, although the future of the bus station is still not likely to be revealed until next month.

The NCP car park has now been demolished (Image: T&A)

The site of the flattened car park will now be used as an urban green space, due to be called Hall Ings Park.

It will not include any access to the Interchange – although the option to link it up in the future remains.

Plans for Hall Ings Park (Image: West Yorkshire Combined Authority)

The taxi rank at the Interchange will be closed off to traffic to create a new pedestrian plaza for the station – which is still one of West Yorkshire’s main rail stations despite the bus station being closed.

The taxi rank at Bradford Interchange (Image: T&A)

The taxi rank will be relocated to Bridge Street, immediately outside the station.

Sections of the Interchange that have been closed since January will be re-opened, including the public toilets and escalators.

The planned plaza in front of Bradford Interchange (Image: West Yorkshire Combined Authority)

At a press briefing on Friday, officers revealed they hope to have the work completed by the end of the year – in time for Bradford’s City of Culture celebrations.

The inside of Bradford Interchange (Image: T&A)

The work to replace the NCP car park was first proposed in 2019, and was part of a raft of measures awarded cash through the Government’s Transforming Cities Fund in early 2020.

It was said the work would create a “world class gateway” to the city.

Other schemes included the pedestrianisation of several city centre streets which is now well underway. On Hall Ings the work would effectively create a new park between City Hall and the Interchange as an extension of the existing Norfolk Gardens.

The ramp leading to the rail platforms will get a much needed refurbishment (Image: T&A)

Until recently, the plans for the concourse were still moving forward – despite the Interchange bus station having been closed for safety reasons since January.

But at Friday’s briefing, officers said the work would have required the demolition of sections of the Interchange building – which could not happen with the current safety concerns.

A planning application for the work has now been submitted by the Council.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority will pay for the work to the station, while the park and plaza work will be carried out by the Council at a cost of £8m.

Bradford Interchange (Image: T&A)

That money will come from the Transforming Cities Fund cash, and will also include work to re-clad and restore sections of the buildings either side of the old NCP – City Exchange and the Bradford Hotel.

Although the Interchange closure has only affected the bus station, the situation has been far from ideal for the thousands of rail passengers that use Bradford Interchange every day.

There are currently no accessible toilet facilities in the Interchange, no escalators or lifts – users need to travel up a ramp to get to the train platforms, and no shops or café facilities.

The NCP has now been demolished (Image: T&A)

Richard Gelder, Highways Services Manager, said: “Since the closure of the Interchange we’ve put a lot of work in to understand the state of the Interchange, and how we can still deliver the Transforming Cities Fund work, as well as something that improves experience for rail passengers.

“The proposal we’ve come up with is one that can be delivered while the Interchange is in its current state but doesn’t prejudice any future scheme.”

It will include “wayfinding” – signs letting people know how to get around the city, as well as WYCA staff on hand to offer support to passengers.

The plaza will include planters with trees and plants, while Hall Ings Park will include trees, flowers, green space, benches, logs and large stones.

Areas of the station, including the canopy and ramp leading to the platforms, will be refurbished.

Dave Haskins WYCA’s director of passenger experience, said: “There has been a justifiable concern about the lack of facilities in the station area. It is important for us to procced with this. The aim is to get this completed by the end of the year. If we finish sooner, we’ll open sooner.

Mr Gelder said the Hall Ings Park was a temporary measure – incorporating parts of the long term plan for the site with measures that can be changed when the future of the station becomes clearer.

He said the timescale for the opening of the park was the same as the timescale for the opening of a newly pedestrianised Hall Ings – the end of this year or early 2025.

He said that the hard standing areas would all be completed, but due to the planting season not all of the green spaces will have been completed by the time the pedestrianised streets open.

Bradford Council had purchased the NCP car park for £4m in 2017.

Councillor Alex Ross Shaw, the Council's executive member for regeneration, transport and planning, said: “When we purchased the NCP it was always a strategic acquisition. We had the Northern Powerhouse Rail station in mind, but even if that was going to be elsewhere we’d still have a strategic link to the Interchange site.”

He said the Interchange would likely remain a significant site in the city centre, no matter what the future of the bus station was.

Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin said: “Bradford’s residents, passengers and visitors deserve a fitting gateway to the city.

“We know the closure of the Interchange has presented real challenges, but these works will help create a welcoming and attractive entry point for people visiting the city centre."

Cllr Ross-Shaw added: “The closure of the bus station at the Interchange has presented a lot of challenges to our planned works in the area, but we’ve worked closely with the Combined Authority on these plans, which will greatly improve the railway station of the Interchange as a gateway to the city. 

"We want to get this done as soon as soon as possible so that those using the rail station and the buses on Bridge Street have access to toilets and also more pleasant area to wait.”