Thu Jul 17, 2014 11:49 am
Not sure what I think about the specific design.. but any significant expansion and improvement of the station was always going to have to involve either demotion of the existing building, or something that expanded it or enveloped it. People on "this" forum have been saying a more serious revamp of the station was required.
And actually, if done sensibly, a nice enveloping job can look great. Imagine the stone work all cleaned up and the building sitting inside a new glass dome/canopy. It could be a bit like the British Museum Great Courtyard... Perhaps the existing concourse could become part restaurant / part waiting lounge... or a tourist information centre (allowing the Old Library to become a proper museum, as funding allows).
And the retail/catering options would be a real boon. In London stations they've made travelling much more pleasant, and can indeed become a mini destination in their own right. Travel catering/retail is also one of the successes of modern commercial development. The rents operators are willing to pay to secure this space provides the evidence of this. And whilst some people may question whether there should be so much commercial space - perhaps the design could be more understated and complementary to the existing building without so much -, the income from this space will provide much of the funds needed for the broader redevelopment.
Usual naysayers on Walesonline. Someone saying it should be spent on health and child poverty. Another one complaining Cardiff gets everything and it should be spent elsewhere (Govt spending per person in Cardiff is substantially below Welsh average, actually). And others saying train service should be improved before they spend money on stations. On this latter point, I have a little sympathy, but it represents a fundamental misunderstanding about how funding and rail operations work. The station will struggle to cope with the expanded services and passenger numbers expected - so services will deteriorate without investment. And improved services would push up demand - meaning the station would struggle. So you need to invest in the station alongside trying to improve service reliability.
And, this money comes from Whitehall (its Network Rail grant) rather than Cardiff Bay - which helps fund the operation of rail services in Wales. So its not as if this money would be available to spend on the train services directly anyway. Its a case of use it or lose it... A more interesting question is whether the money would be better spent on other Metro projects. Not sure about that one... and I think the Welsh Gov is taking the lead on that.