Coach waiting room axed from bus station

The £8m pound facility is currently being built

Exeter’s new bus station will not include a waiting room for long distance coach passengers, it can be confirmed.

The £8m new bus station with modern facilities is under construction, and along St Sidwell’s Point – the UK’s first super energy efficient and passivhous leisure complex – is set to open in the spring of 2021.

Once the new Bus Station facility is completed, the initial plans would have seen the long distance coaches use dedicated bus bays in Bampfylde Street as their drop-off and collection point, and a lease for a space within The Barn student accommodation, on the ground floor close to Bampfylde Street, had been secured as a waiting room.

But the Exeter City Council Leisure Complex and Bus Station Programme Board, at their most recent meeting, decided not to pursue the provision of a long distance coach waiting facility and to terminate the current lease on The Barn facility.

Instead, the interim arrangement for passengers using long distance coaches, with a drop-off and collection point from on-street stands sited in Sidwell Street, is expected to continue once the new bus station opens.

The meeting took place in September, but the minutes were only presented for approval by the Executive committee at a meeting on Tuesday.

Members of the committee agreed with the recommendation of officers not to pursue the provision of a long distance facility. Concern for the potential to place waiting coach passengers at significant risk of anti-social behaviour was the reason given, adding that the Falcon coach service operates very successfully without any enclosed waiting room facility.

The minutes added that Devon and Cornwall Police raised a number of concerns which related to the safety of passengers and public in an enclosed space, the potential for anti-social behaviour and the increased likelihood of such behaviour later in the evening and early hours of the morning encouraged by the attraction of a lit and warm area, the minutes outlined.

They also said that there was no requirement for a long distance coach waiting room facility from a planning perspective, nor was there was any statutory duty to provide a coach waiting room facility, and that the annual operational and maintenance costs could reach £125,000 per annum with the coach operators not confirmed whether they would contribute to the costs of the facility or its ongoing maintenance/use.

The report added that Devon County Council’s Exeter Highways and Traffic Committee could also ask for and explore with National Express the opportunity to consider a similar arrangement as the Falcon Service, which picks up passengers on the outskirts of the city at either the Honiton Road or Sowton park-and-ride sites, as this would avoid unnecessary delays and also contribute towards reducing traffic congestion and carbon emissions in the city.

Addressing the minutes at Tuesday’s executive meeting, Cllr Diana Moore, asked in light of the Programme Board’s decision to ditch the coach waiting room, what review will there be to bus shelters on Sidwell Street, to improve facilities, orientation and security for coach users?

In response, Cllr Phil Bialyk, leader of the council, said that the decision had been made by the Board, that the Bus Users’ Group were in support of not using the Barn as a long waiting, and that there was no desire of the council to force coaches to use the outskirts of the city.

The new Bus Station and St Sidwell’s Point Leisure Centre is still expected to open in Spring 2021 and is both on schedule and on budget.

A spokesman for the city council said: “Good progress continues to be made on site and the timescales remain on schedule. The leisure complex and new bus station will open as planned in Spring 2021.”

According to a timeline on the council’s website, the next milestone will be the ‘topping out’ ceremony where the high point of St Sidwell’s Point is expected to be reached, with that due to be in either February or March, depending on availability of people for the ceremony.

The spokesman added: “A date for the ‘topping out’ ceremony for the leisure complex is currently being arranged and more details will be released shortly.”

By September 2020, the external cladding is expected to be complete, as will all roofworks complete, while the fit out of the inside will begin in October. By Spring 2021, St Sidwell’s Point and new bus station expected to open

Once complete and open in early 2021, the state-of-the-art leisure complex will include:

• eight-lane Main Pool (25m)
• four-lane Learner Pool
• Multi-purpose Room/Crèche
• Gym (150 stations)
• Spin Studio
• 2 x Group Exercise Studios
• Spa – Sauna, saunarium, salt vaporium, relaxation room, manicure/pedicure station and 4 x treatment rooms
• Small soft play area
• Cafe