Norwich Bus Station.
New roof canopy will be needed for £5m Norwich bus station, council bosses reveal
Dan Grimmer
Thursday, November 1, 2012
6:30 AM
A new canopy roof will have to be put over Norwich’s £5m bus station just seven years after it opened, council bosses have admitted.
In the summer, the ticket office, toilets and cafe shut for more than a month because of a leak in the the futuristic-looking roof, pictured right.
Norfolk County Council’s contractors carried out repairs, but it has emerged the long-term solution will mean a new canopy will have to be put into place.
Council officers say that “major work” will not happen until the new year.
But, in the meantime, there will have to be further work on the existing bus station roof this Sunday to head off further leaks once wintry weather arrives.
A spokesman said: “We have looked at what caused the problem and there is going to have to be a new canopy. That is going to be a major job. We can’t do that in the run-up to Christmas, so it will probably be done at half-term in February next year.
“The work we will do at the weekend is to ensure that the temporary repairs we did in the summer will last through the winter.”
During Sunday’s work all services will run from the bus station, but only from stands 14 and 15.
Posters will be on site providing information to passengers and staff will direct bus users.
But, while the buses will run, the work means the concourse areas outside the terminal building will be closed to all buses and pedestrians. Passengers will be able to enter the site from Surrey Street or from the main entrance on Queens Road, but there will be no entry to the bus station via the Queens Road entrance under the Travelodge.
All bus services, including National Express services, will be directed to enter the bus station from the Surrey Street entrance, serve either stand 14 or 15 (outside the YMCA) and then leave via the Queens Road entrance.
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16 comments
Never mind repairing it - why does a bus station need a roof?
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Norfolk John
Sunday, November 4, 2012
The roof will not cost 5 million, that sum is what the bus station has cost taxpayers. But whoever accepted the brief should now take their hat, cause the material specifications did not hold up to what it said on the tin.
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ingo wagenknecht
Sunday, November 4, 2012
I wonder who`ll get the job? Usual suspects?
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Mad Brewer
Sunday, November 4, 2012
You could build a decent waiting room with a typical architects` fee.
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Mad Brewer
Sunday, November 4, 2012
I didn`t seriously expect to be allowed to comment. Be getting a knock on the door in the early hours next.........
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Mad Brewer
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Harry and norman are right. I suppose generous fees were paid to some fancy architect for creating this Emperor`s Clothes of a canvas lid. That waiting room is inadequate and often unavailable. All too familiar signs of Cronyism in contract allocation, over Dinner somewhere lush, no doubt. Badness. Animal Farm.
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Mad Brewer
Sunday, November 4, 2012
All that is needed is a warm waiting room after hours and decent taxi access,not some fantasy roof! Too logical so it won't happen!
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Harry Rabinowitz
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Has the self licking lollipop award been handed back yet????
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nrg
Thursday, November 1, 2012
5 million available for a fancy roof? But no money to keep open the waiting room with security? The waiting room and a place of safety late at night is much more critical for passengers than some roof that looks like a throw back to the Sydney Opera House. National Express buses use the station through the night and the waiting room was very necessary for the comfort and safety of passengers.
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norman hall
Thursday, November 1, 2012
So, who is going to pay for this ?
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Rorping
Thursday, November 1, 2012
The canopy never was fit for purpose - it looks impressive, modern, cutting edge design etc, but as Daisy Roots points out it does not shelter you from anything other than sunlight. The wind and rain just cuts underneath because it is too high. The planning committee saw the shiny modern design on paper, got all excited about it, but didn't stop to think whether the roof would actually work in the real world. Architecture should only ever be 'award winning' if it actually WORKS, not just look pretty!
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Pete Bogg
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Mel is absolutely right, the bus station cost us 5 million pounds in 2005 and the roof design, a treated canvass of sorts, was inappropriate for such large span design. The specifications and brief should show who has signed this design off and heads should role. If this was an exercise in saving money in the short term, then this is the result, extra costs and mayhem for another year.
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ingo wagenknecht
Thursday, November 1, 2012
The Bus Station got an Award - that says it all . It is going to cost a fortune to take the old roof down , then put a new one up . And how many weeks will the Bus station be closed for ? The setting out of the bus bays and so on , should have been done by people in the bus industry , who understand what is required . Nobody will be held responsible , as usual .
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dragonfly
Thursday, November 1, 2012
And whosev fault is this? Is it the architect, the builders or the council? Somebody is at fault and it should not be paid for out of the public purse...
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Mel Lacey
Thursday, November 1, 2012
so is this 7 years from the first leak ??? i think not , but who is paying ? fit for purpose springs to mind , get the contractors back in at their expense .. if not scrap all busse's and make the roads better for tax paying drivers !
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adinorwich
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Save the money, put decent shelters where people actually wait instead of something so high the wind and rain whistle under it. Or redesign the whole thing so that it is efficient and safe instead of pedestrians running the gauntlet of buses and bus drivers finding the exits from the stands tight to negotiate. Amazing that it was ever approved. Hull might be a dump, but its bus interchange at the Paragon is a model for safety and convenience for passengers.
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Daisy Roots
Thursday, November 1, 2012