Opinion
Network Rail
Going with the flow T
he inspiration for the modern style of sympathetic rebuilding is widely held to be Liverpool Street in the mid-1980s. Before then the complete destruction of the old Euston, the burying of Sunderland and Birmingham, and the unfortunate juxtaposition of the Manchester Arena over Manchester Victoria’s through platforms could not be said to be sympathetic – but they did all have one thing in common with their modern relatives: the stations still had to serve passengers throughout the reconstruction process.
Most building contractors would raise their eyebrows if you suggested moving millions of passengers around their building sites, but that is what Network Rail and its partners must do to bring such sights as the new western concourse at King’s Cross to fruition.
The final package of work at King’s Cross – the demolition of the 1970s southern concourse and the creation of King’s Cross Square – is due for completion in autumn 2013, and the work of re-routing passengers around and through the building work will continue until then. How they do so, and which walking routes are used between platforms, concourse and onward connections, is a matter of considerable importance to the project team. Passengers leaving platforms 0-8, under the original – but now fully restored – train shed roof, currently have to follow
a passageway between hoardings funnelling them towards the Underground station, while others peel off left and right to other destinations. This is no accident. In fact, so important was access to the Tube, the worksite was cut in half to allow for the route straight out to it.
Around 70 per cent of all passengers arriving at King’s Cross continue their journeys by Underground. Lessons learned in
King’s Cross, Edinburgh Waverley, Birmingham New Street, Nottingham, London Bridge… Network Rail’s expanding roster of station redevelopments is testament to the resurgence in demand for rail travel and the need to provide more space for growing numbers of passengers
March 2013 Page 15
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116