Views sought for £65m railway station revamp

The proposals include a new pedestrian and cycling route from the station to Queensgate Shopping Centre

People are being invited to shape the plans of a £65m project to revamp the area around a city centre railway station.

Peterborough's Station Quarter is being redeveloped, with a new station entrance and route to the city centre for walkers and cyclists.

A survey on the proposed scheme closes at 11:59 BST on 27 September.

Nick Thulbourn, Peterborough City Council's cabinet member for growth and regeneration, said it would be a "significant transformation" for people in the city.

"The feedback collected will be instrumental in shaping the final plans for the Station Quarter," he said.

The proposals include creating a western entrance to the station, with new drop-off points and a multi-storey car park.

The existing eastern station building would be refurbished and lead to a pedestrianised station square.

'Dark underpasses'

The 10-minute walk to the city centre from the station was described in planning documents as a "maze of narrow pavements, dark underpasses and pedestrian bridges".

An underpass at the Queensgate roundabout would be filled in and replaced with a ground-level pedestrian crossing.

Two pop-up events will take place to talk to people about the project, on 30 August outside Queensgate Shopping Centre and on 21 September at Cathedral Arch in the city centre.

The existing route between the station and shops was described as "not easy or welcoming" for people to navigate

The project won £48m from the government's Levelling Up Fund last year, with the remaining cost being paid by the city council and Network Rail.

Robin Dobson, the group property director at Network Rail, said the plan was to make the railway station "fit for the future".

He said: "The redevelopment also provides the opportunity to unlock land to deliver a wide range of uses including housing, driving economic growth for the city."

The council plans to submit a full business case to the government in early 2025.