Tuesday 4 Aug 2020
Waverley Masterplan concept revealed
- Region & Route:
- Scotland’s Railway: Scotland
Network Rail, Scottish Government and City of Edinburgh Council have today revealed their concept designs for transforming the capital’s main station as part of the Edinburgh Waverley Masterplan.
The Masterplan envisions a station that is a vital part of the city, with a major new public space on Waverley Bridge providing views of the iconic city skyline. It will be a station that puts people first, providing easy access for all, and creating vital city connections for walking, cycling and public transport.
The masterplan has been developed in collaboration with City of Edinburgh Council’s City Centre Transformation Programme to prioritise movement by foot, cycle and public transport and fundamentally change the way people move about the city in the future.
As part of the concept design, the Masterplan partners are proposing a new mezzanine concourse across the whole station that will help deliver better access to Waverley from the surrounding streets, enable the creation of fully-accessible entrances and increase circulation space for passengers.
The mezzanine will provide the opportunity to extend the operational platforms below, create new facilities to cater for future growth in passengers and services and also help improve the all-round experience for people using the station.
Michael Matheson, Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity said: “The Masterplan has produced an exciting concept design which delivers a station that can meet operational requirements for the longer term and improves accessibility for all by addressing, through its use of a mezzanine floor, the complex levels around the station.
"By introducing new points of access in key areas, this plan will ensure the station becomes a seamless gateway to the Old and New towns of Edinburgh and one that encourages greater commuter, business and leisure use alike.
“The next stage of design work will see how 21st century functionality can be incorporated within the historical setting of Waverley so that we deliver a station that can meet operational requirements for the longer term and deliver a fantastic user experience for everyone.”
Alex Hynes, managing director of Scotland’s Railway, said: “We believe there is a compelling case for making ambitious changes to Waverley which will improve the station for our customers while respecting the history and heritage of this listed structure.
“The Masterplan is a wonderful example of the private and public sectors working closely alongside government to develop innovative and ambitious plans for the capital.
“Waverley has always played a key role in the life of the city and the plans we have unveiled today will help to ensure it continues to do so in the years ahead as we all play our part to revitalise our economy and put the impact of the current pandemic behind us.”
Cllr Adam McVey, leader of the City of Edinburgh Council, said: “These concept designs represent a significant next step for the project and for the city. They portray an accessible, connected station fit for the Scotland’s Capital, and we welcome the benefits this will bring to the city centre – and to our residents, commuters and visitors. It’s crucial that the station expands capacity to accommodate the growth in passengers and improves accessibility.
“This will not only help Edinburgh be better connected but help us achieve a more equal, carbon-neutral future, with rail well integrated with bus and tram, pedestrians, cyclists and wheelchair users and those with other mobility issues.
“As such, we’ll continue to provide input into the development of the Masterplan in the coming months and years. But, equally, we’ll have an important role to play in monitoring and scrutinising the project’s progress, ensuring it conserves our city’s unique heritage and aligns with our own plans for the city centre, whether that be through City Centre Transformation, or developing a wider vision for the Waverley valley.”
To find out more about the masterplan visit: https://scotlandsrailway.com/projects/waverley-masterplan
Notes to Editors
Notes to editors
The Masterplan steering group will now commission further technical and engineering studies to develop the plan from this concept stage, particularly to identify the most appropriate roof solution.
This will occur over the next year and will involve further engagement with stakeholders and the public.
The Masterplan was launched in 2018 to provide a blueprint for the evolution of the station over the short, medium and long term.
Drawing together the rail industry, local and central government and key stakeholders within the city – including accessibility, transport, business and heritage groups – the Masterplan considers not just the station itself, but how it interacts with the wider public realm.
Today’s concept design has also been influenced by a month-long public consultation which was held in the station, and online, in Spring 2019 where passengers were given the chance to review options for transforming the station.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Network Rail press office - Nick King
Media relations manager (Scotland)
0141 555 4108 / 07515 617073
nick.king3@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk