john roberts architects | Lincoln Transport Hub

Lincoln Transport Hub - Making It Happen

Client

City of Lincoln Council

Client Brief

To create a Transport Hub which would form a gateway to the city and act as a catalyst for regeneration of the area.

How Was This Made Possible?

The project was procured through the Scape Framework.

“We valued the early engagement of JRA to assist in overcoming a number of complicated design challenges a large complex project of this nature requires.

"The process was lengthy and included accommodating a number of operational needs which JRA managed to satisfy in the final scheme design."

Kate Ellis, Major Development Director – City of Lincoln Council

Background

There had been many failed private development proposals for this site, spanning over 20 years. These centred around commercial development.

This new development lead by City of Lincoln Council shifted the emphasis towards a transport and infrastructure lead scheme which is intended to act as a catalyst for the regeneration of the area.

The site was located in the heart of the City of Lincoln and bounded by a number of main arterial routes. It had become a very run-down area of the city.

Before: View towards Site along St Mary's Street

Description

This was a major project for Lincoln, incorporating:

Demolition of existing bus station and rooftop car park building.
New 1001 Multi-Storey Car Park (MSCP).
New state-of-the-art 14-Bay Bus Station with 520m2 concourse. The Bus Station incorporates coffee shop, information desk, changing places facility, baby changing facilities, drivers’ welfare facilities and cash room at ground floor level. First floor comprising public toilets, office accommodation and control room.
Improvement works to the rail station forecourt.
Improved and relocated access arrangements into the railway station customer car park.
Improved highway works: traffic calming measures, cycle lanes, safe pedestrian crossing.
New public space outside the main railway station entrance leading to the new bus station and the city centre.

“A lot of design work ensured we preserved the historic landscape of the city together with the protected views of the Cathedral; we believe the final design reflects this."

Kate Ellis, Major Development Director – City of Lincoln Council

Construction

Work commenced on site 5 September 2016.
8 week archaeological investigation.
Temporary bus station set up on land owned by City of Lincoln Council. The temporary bus station operated a DIRO manoeuvre which enabled bus drivers to become familiar with this new method of operation.
Section 278 Works. Roads opened to the public on 17 November 2017.
New Bus Station opened January 2018.
New MSCP opened on a phased basis in November and December 2017.

Funding

Project costs £29m.
SLGF grant funding £13m.
£225,000 NSIP funding.
Remaining funding by City of Lincoln Council.

Meetings and Public Relations

Progress meetings throughout the construction works.
Key milestones reported to Local Press and Media.
Public consultations.
Key plans placed on hoardings.

Measuring the Success

Lincoln Transport Hub has transformed the city centre providing new bus station, 1001 space multi-storey car park, retail space and pedestrian plaza, improvements to rail station forecourt.

Lincoln Transport Hub has created a safe, accessible, attractive gateway to the city, reversing the downward trend of the area, rejuvenated interest in further development, increased footfall, improved connectivity and created vitality.

“For myself as a Business Owner, this place is all about connectivity, everything that’s happening with Lincoln at the moment is really really important to us so that we’ve decided to reinvest in the City. So, we’ve expanded our premises, giving opportunities to younger people. Younger people can’t always afford to travel by car or bring their own car.”

Simon Shaw, Local Business Owner

Survey

City of Lincoln Council commissioned a survey by WSP which shows how the Hub has helped deliver a safer, pedestrian focused environment by reducing the amount of vehicular traffic in this area and increasing footfall.

Table showing the comparison of 2016 and 2018 average daily traffic (at 15-minute intervals) for east bound (EB) and west bound (WB) directions. Information extracted from "Lincoln Transport Hub Monitoring and Evaluation PLan Survey Data Comparison Report" produced by WSP.

Chart showing the temporal variation of Average Daily Traffic (2018 vs 2016) at 15-minute intervals for east bound (EB) and west bound (WB) directions. Information extracted from "Lincoln Transport Hub Monitoring and Evaluation PLan Survey Data Comparison Report" produced by WSP.

Project Recognition

Awarded:

Infrastructure : RICS East Midlands Awards 2019
Best New Car Park : British Parking Awards 2019

Jury comment: Lincoln Central is an example of the car park as civic architecture. It forms a vital element of a new transport hub and also serves as the gateway to the regeneration of the city centre. The building has been designed to complement Lincoln’s historic fabric, and in doing so, enhances the city.

Development Project of the Year (over £5m) : Lincolnshire Construction and Property Awards 2019
East Midlands Civil Engineering Project of the Year : Celebrating Construction Awards 2018
Safer Bus Station Award : 2018

Finalist:

Constructing Excellence National Awards 2018

Shortlisted:

East Midlands Property Dinner Awards 2018 : Regeneration and Restoration Project of the Year
Brick Awards 2018 : Outdoor Space
National Transport Awards 2018 : Construction and Engineering Project of the Year

Interview with Paul Ponwaye - Project Architect

What do you consider to be the challenges and successes of this project?

“To be able to reconstruct this part of the city was a great opportunity for us.

“This was a complex project involving several significant stakeholders including City of Lincoln Council, Lincolnshire County Council, Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership, Network Rail, Lincolnshire Co-op and the Department for Transport.

“The project was originally designed with a substantial element of Network Rail involvement in terms of the utilisation of Network Rail land and alterations and improvements to Network Rail assets and infrastructure through the provision of a new railway pedestrian crossing bridge.

“We produced a scheme and obtained planning permission which included the new Network Rail asset. Due to unforeseen technical and financial constraints the Network Rail land became no longer available to be included within the proposals.

“The Department for Transport funding required that the project was to be completed within certain strict timescales. The loss of the Network Rail land meant that the original scheme could not proceed. The entire project needed to be re-designed to fit on the remaining available land.

“We had to work quickly to produce further feasibility studies giving up most of the Christmas holiday period 2015 in order that the client could make a decision on how to proceed immediately in the New Year 2016, to meet the deadlines for the Department for Transport funding.

“The loss of available development land did not change the project’s objectives and the same amount of accommodation was required on a much smaller site area, resulting in an increase in the development density.

“The site is located within the historic City of Lincoln at the foot of the historic hillside, with protected views of the Cathedral. Lincoln Cathedral is widely regarded as one of England’s finest cathedrals; John Ruskin wrote: The cathedral of Lincoln is out and out the most precious piece of architecture in the British Isles and roughly speaking worth any two other cathedrals we have.

“The increase in height and scale of the Multi-Storey Car Park had to be very carefully considered, in order to avoid a detrimental impact on the protected views of the Cathedral.

“A more space efficient solution was also required for the Bus Station in order to fit within the available area. Numerous permutations of the layout were prepared, each having to be proved by means of Swept Path Analysis for bus movements.

“In addition, the loss of development land required that the Bus Station had to be relocated with the effect that it would now straddle a culverted section of a main waterway. This presented further challenges in terms of providing a design that would effectively span the culvert to avoid imposing any loads onto the structure below ground.

“A further complication arose following the site strip at which point the height and extent of the culvert structure could be fully determined. Both the width of the culvert and the top level were far in excess of what was initially assumed. Again, we had to very quickly assess the impact of this discovery and further re-design the Bus Station to accommodate this.

“We worked closely with the Local Planning Authority Conservation Officer and Historic England to ensure that the proposal was designed sensitively to take into account the setting and historic city.

“The proposals were presented to an OPUN panel to ensure that the design was of the highest quality.

“Materials were carefully considered throughout in order to reflect the materials of the surrounding historic landscape.

“The project was finished on time and on budget and has been widely regarded as a huge success, having achieved the objectives to create a welcoming gateway to the city and provide a catalyst to further regenerate the area."