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Thursday 27 Jun 2019

Stunning photos give sneak peek of the new roof at Leeds station

Region & Route:

Eastern

Spectacular pictures of the new transparent roof at Leeds railway station have been released by Network Rail.

The behind-the-scenes images show that the towers currently positioned in the main concourse are supporting a huge maze of scaffolding inside a giant tent like structure, known as ‘the top hat’.

Within the top hat, the new ETFE roof is starting to emerge, with the pictures showing for the first time the roof’s new airy design as well as how much higher it will be than the existing structure.

The multi-million-pound project to replace the tired, wooden roof – as well as straighten the ticket gateline and renew each barrier - is still on course to be completed in time for the UCI Road World Championships at the end of September. The roof will allow more light into the station which will make the area more pleasant for passengers and the improved gateline will reduce congestion and make travelling through the station much easier.

Work is also taking place to improve the pedestrian space on New Station Street and this is also on course to be completed on time. Late last year, Network Rail removed toilet fees from Leeds station and there is currently a refurbishment of the facilities taking place.

Mark Bloor, Programme Manager for Network Rail, said: “We know that for the past six months passengers have been extremely patient while the concourse at Leeds has been full of towers, and I’m delighted that we can now show them why that’s been the case and what we’ve been doing to improve their station.

“We’re entering the last stretch of construction which will mean some short-term changes to access routes through the station, so we’re asking passengers to bear with us and allow a little extra time to travel as we put the finishing touches a project that we hope will make a significant improvement to one of the main gateways to Leeds.”

During the final few months of construction, additional railway staff will be on hand to direct passengers and offer assistance.

Following the completion of the roof, gateline and New Station Street, a new platform will be opened in the station in 2021 to help improve reliability for passengers.