News: Rotherham Central Station reopens

Aspects of the redeveloped Rotherham Central Station have reopened in Rotherham town centre.

Work began on the £8.5m redevelopment in 2010 and last week, the new lifts, waiting room, ticket office and platforms all reopened.

International architectural firm, Aedas, produced plans to replace the old building with a modern, lightweight entrance structure which will include a new passenger waiting lounge, ticket office and retail area.

Extensive improvements to the platforms, access, car parking and CCTV are also taking place.

The new station has been designed to use as much natural light as possible, creating an air of openness and space to the whole building. Additionally, on the refurbished platforms there are new canopies to give better weather protection to the travelling public.

The investment required to deliver improvements of this scale and quality is pulled together from a range of sources, including the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), Yorkshire Forward, South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive and Network Rail.

Contractors, Galliford Try were initially set to complete the development by Christmas 2010. The work is now due to be completed this Easter.

The South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive apologised for the delays to this project. A spokesperson said: "Redeveloping the station has taken longer than we expected and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, and our project partners apologise for the delays and thank you for your patience throughout the construction work."

Chris Jackson, general manager for Network Rail, added: "Passengers at Rotherham are starting to see the significant improvements which will make using the station easier and more enjoyable. We will continue to support a speedy conclusion to all the works."

Following the completion of the work on the station, a £1m project is planned to upgrade the Central Road area and make a better environmental connection between the town centre and the station. Tenders have been submitted with work taking place in 2012.

South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive website

Images: Tom Austen