This artists impression isn't giving us much to go on (probably not exactly shouting it from the rooftops!) but this is what we've got to 'look forward?' to...



(I know this has been around for a while but wanted to start a specific thread for it's discussion/updated and historic photos)

Given that this is the second busiest railway station in Wales surely this is a massive dissapointment that's 2.5+ million passengers through this entrance!!

I think there's a stronger argument for making more of a feature of Central as it's the main gateway to the city from further afield, but Queen Street is essentially just a big commuter hub for the valleys and there's much less justification for spending millions on a landmark building. Either way, I'd rather they invested more money in improving the network itself instead of building glitzy buildings at every station. As long as capacity is increased - which it will be - then it will be an improvement, and aesthetically it will be a lot better than what's there now.

I think we're just going to have to get used to the fact that there will be fewer new public landmarks than in the noughties, and those that do get built are likely to be far more understated than in the past. I think it's an opportunity as it should force us to think more about the cityscape as a whole and come up with good designs that fit into that without screaming their presence as past buildings have. The Millennium Stadium, WMC, Senedd, and even the likes of Altolusso and Radisson are all great landmarks, but none of them really relate well to their surroundings and there's a limit to how many buildings like that you can have. Money and brashness doesn't always equate to good architecture or urban form.

It's all very well stating the above (as if this is a case in isolation in the age of austerity).... but, are you inclined to think again if you read about the £895 million being spent on Reading station (google it for details)?

Do you not then at least get an understanding of why we begin to think we've been relatively short changed with the improvements planned for Cardiff Central?

As regards the shelter v canopy saga at the new platform at Queen St - see other thread on this forum!

and this is the shelter that is the 'icing on the cake' of our queen st dissapointment..



SHOCKING!!

The entrance is OK with me. But the shelter is pretty abysmal. What services will be departing from this platform? If it is ones to the Valleys, then at peak periods for commuting and shopping, the platforms get pretty full. If it rains, there won't be enough room for 1/4 passengers in that small bus shelter. If its for the bay, and the current bay platform becomes an additional Valleys-line platform, then perhaps its passable. But it does just look cheap and nasty, and completely out of character with the rest of the station - surely a proper canopy cannot cost that much.

Not really. Reading is a much larger station requiring more work, and the redevelopment plans were drawn up and signed off in the previous control period when money was plentiful. It was also identified as a key national pinchpoint along with Birmingham and Manchester, hence those 3 stations were allocated significant sums. Very few stations outside of London have seen that level of investment. If the plans were drawn up post 2010, I doubt they'd be anywhere near as grand as the designs that we're seeing come to fruition today. You only need to look at the utterly utilitarian designs coming out for the new HS2 stations to see that.

Earlier this month Febuary 2014 Transport Minister Baroness Kramer opened a £53 million upgrade of Gatwick station..
There has been a £43 million upgrade of Peterborgh Station..
£19 Million on Gravesend Station...
Many more stations throughout the UK - well England
.and Scotland.
Queen Street station and the thousands of Valley Commuters deserve much much better

There are no plans to widen the Newport Road bridge (too expensive of course) so there will still be two through tracks either side of Queen St. I think the platform capacity must cause a bottleneck at present. They're making the station 4 through platforms and one bay platform which is doubling the through provision.

I emailed Network Rail and having re-read their reply I'm not sure if there's a glimmer of hope for some sort of canopy (probably clutching at straws)

The amount Network Rail is spending on Cardiff's station is a disgrace when you compare it to money lavished on King's Cross and other London stations. I'm not in favour of applying the Barnett Formula when it comes to rail investment - but Network Rail really are taking the p*ss!

It's not just us losing out - the English region do too. These are IPPR estimates of transport investment in England.

£2731 per head in London
£792 per head in the South East
£311 per head in the East Midlands
£269 per head in the West Midlands
£201 per head in Yorkshire & Humber
£134 per head in the North West
£43 per head in the East
£19 per head in the South West
£5 per head in the North East

http://www.ippr.org/press-releases/111/8456/transport-spend-per-head-is-p2700-for-london-but-p5-per-head-in-north-east

Where is our pride?
Queen Street Station is an essential hub for the Valley lines.
It is a showcase station for Cardiff.
It is the first and last impression of the Capital for thousands of people on a daily basis.
Its a statement for the City region workers shoppers visitors commuters investors
A Queen Street Station that is comfortable sheltered vibrant atmospheric sets a tone for the City's future journey...
Take pride just like the English, French, German, Italian, Dutch Capitals do...
This is shameful plan for the future...
Wake Up and assert your self Cardiff - Valleys -Wales

@slim

Great rhetoric, how would you propose we achieve all that? Wales doesn't create any surplus wealth

ok, so I'm going to speculate optimistically about the bus stops. Is it possible that more covered seating and customer facilities will be added to the new platform as the new building at the front of the station develops? The current building is single story. The plan clearly shows the new building has a section that is two stories. Is it not possible that that will provide the bulk of the customer facilities on this platform and that the bus stops are an overflow/additional area? Maybe there is more rain shelter as part of this? And the bus stops have been put in place in advance.

I know I could probably dig out the plans from somewhere and have look but I cant be bothered right now. But perhaps there is more to come than some of the posts above suggest.

Possibly, read what you will into this.

Work has just begun on the redevelopment of Port Talbot station, that has a full length glass awning which will soon be demolished. Maybe Network Rail could consider saving the best bits of that for re assembling at Queen St.
Better than that bus shelter.

Hmmm the trouble is if we tell the English we want Cardiff treated as a 'capital' we can't really play the subsidy card.

Population of Germany 80m. France 60m. Italy 60m. I'd imagine the Netherlands GDP is maybe 10 times that of Wales. However the figures from the IPPR look incredible. Does the NE really get £5 per head?

If this platform is just the Bay shuttle then i wouldn't worry too much what it looks like. Transfering the Valley lines to (current) platform 3 makes sense in this regard. It's got a roof after all! The new platform is not much different to what you see at Bristol Parkway. My main question is access. How do you get there from the other platforms?

I do wonder how it will all work. We will presumably have 3 platforms rather than 2 serving the Valley lines. So no longer platform 2(QS) and 7(Central) going one way and 6 and 1 going the other.

The platforms will be 1 for the bay shuttle (new platform on the Brunel House side), 2 (prev 3) and 3 (prev 2) for through trains to Central, 4 (prev 1) and 5 (new platform with said bus shelters) for through trains to the Valleys and Coryton.

I am still hopeful that there will be a canopy along with the new station building

I didn't now abut a 5th platform being built.

This does kind of make sense. However Central will only have 3 platforms dealing with Valleys trains as I think we're only getting one new one - platform 8. This needs explaining to me. If you can manage one new platform how much more difficult would it be to have two?

My understanding is they are not building a new 5th platform, just a new train track running along the east side of the bay platform that previously was waste land. If you look at the 3rd picture in this thread you can see the ground being cleared for the new track.

I was surprised they could squeeze it in at first. Looks like it could fall over the wall into Brunnel House car park!

March 14th...

Looks like they have built the bus stop bit.

No, there are 2. They new platform for the Bay shuttle and the aforementioned bus shelter platform.

Platform 1 (Bay shuttle) Nearest to Brunel House
Platform 2 (Was 3) Old bay shuttle, now a through platform southbound
Platform 3 (Was 2) Through southbound
Platform 4 (Was 1) Through northbound
Platform 5 (Bus shelter) Through northbound

Saw the plans for the new station building and there is a tiny roof bit over the doors to platform 5 which a few people could stand under but it's no canopy! Also a bit of a missed opportunity for cafe's/retail as well. There's just the one newsagent and one small unit.

http://planning.cardiff.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=documents&keyVal=_CARDIFF_DCAPR_94884

Compared to reading railway station these redevelopment is abysmal but at least we got something hopefully cardiff crossrail gets some kind of funding?
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/could-200m-cardiff-crossrail-scheme-2015413
^^

don't get too excited folks!! here's an update, photos taken today...

Cardiff Queen Street Station the showcase station for the ValleyLines....
The economic regenerator the Valley Lines -The Great Welsh hope - dictated by the Civil Service of Whitehall Westminster Lundun Ingerland
... Cardiff Queen Street a third World station
As Reading like so many other stations in the south east enjoy state of the Art status..
Wake Up Cardiff - smell the coffee - London just dont care or understand our needs

Exactly^^ fucks sake were poor

I'm not one to let the Westminster or Welsh govt off the hook in terms of infrastructure investment...but...

Let's be honest, the investment in Queen street is both welcome and broadly appropriate. What do we want there? A new Victoriana platform roof? An entrance hall that is larger than required?

We shouldn't compare the situation to Reading. As miserable, insignificant and depressing as Reading is, it's station is a key thoroughfare for the rest of the UK. The investment there isn't reflective of the town, merely the towns location.

I do think there is a case for bigger investment into Central, but I'll wait until we see what happens. Either way, the council and Welsh Govt have failed to improve central aquare in 15 years so why should Network Rail?

The welsh government need to create an entrance to central square that screams success and creates the political demand for improvements to central.

So yeah, while I recognise what people are saying, I think on Queen St in particular we need to be pleased to see the investment and await what comes from it.

It won't be a stunner, but it will be better than what was there and should hopefully increase footfall on that street, which has always been a let down in the city centre.

I think the site of the current queen street is quite restrictive, i would say any future development of a valleys station should be further north where the car park is and create a more appropriate entrance to Cardiff and the valleys. The whole image of the valleys lines is quite off putting, especially in the evenings! Better stations and trains, as well as connecting up lines could improve the image for use by those other than a relatively small minority.

will the new railway for the bay platform end abruptly like at caerphilly or will it pass the whole way through?

It ends abruptly as although it's The Bay platform it's also a bay platform which is a platform where the track ends at the station.

Does the pic above show the end of the line? As in you need to walk to the far end of the platform to board the train? Or are they going to cut down the trees, widen the wall, and run the track to the shelter. Clearly the first option would be cheaper, but a bit rubbish as well.

As they're laying track then that's most probably it, remember that shelter is not of much concern as it's seemingly very costly!