Lincoln Central Bus Station opens
by David Curry
Complete: The Bus Station is said to be able to transport around 10,000 people a day
Lincoln Central Bus Station has officially opened, the key part of the £30 million Transport Hub scheme.
The new building contains a large open area with seating, interactive touchscreens, changing rooms and the Grand Coffee House, run by the owners of Café 44 on Sincil Street.
Fourteen bay areas will transport approximately 10,000 people a day across Lincolnshire every day.
Major development director for City of Lincoln Council, Kate Ellis, said: "The bus station looks great and provides a fantastic link with the train station and new car park. It fits seamlessly into the city both physically and visually."
The Transport Hub scheme includes a new 1,000 space multi-story car park, which opened late last year, and a pedestrianised zone between the bus and train station.
The temporary bus station, located in Tentercroft Street, will return to its former state as a car park.
Council leader Ric Metcalfe said: "This is a major improvement on the old bus station and a great vote of confidence in public transport."
The council originally planned to open the station in December, alongside the car park, but construction issues forced a delay to late January.
Stagecoach has confirmed a £3 million investment into new buses to coincide with the station opening.
Six double-decked buses will be added to the InterConnect 100 route, which runs from Gainsborough to Scunthorpe every hour.
Ten single-decker buses will be added to various inter-city routes.
The new buses have environmentally friendly Euro 6 engines and USB charging points.
Managing director for Stagecoach East Midlands, Michelle Hargreaves, said: "This is a huge £3 million investment by Stagecoach in brand new buses for our Simplibus services for Lincoln."
Alongside the new buses, Stagecoach has also updated the route numbers to its Simplibus system.
Route numbers are simplified and colour coded to avoid confusion.
