Waverley Station’s Princes Street entrance will be closed to the public from next Thursday (February 10) as a multi-million-pound project to refurbish and modernise the historic station steps gets underway.
The £7million contract will see Morgan Sindall rebuild Waverley Steps, including the installation of three banks of double escalators and a feature entrance to the station on Princes Street, all of which will be enclosed by a steel and glass canopy.
A temporary access bridge spanning platforms 19 and 2 will be used during the closure of the steps to maintain access between the station and Princes Mall. Passengers can also reach Princes Street via the north ramp from Waverley Bridge.
The refurbishment project will also include the construction of a level walkway and two new lifts allowing step-free access between Princes Street and Waverley Station. Work on the steps expected to take approximately one year to complete.
The two 16-passenger lifts will be installed once the steps and escalator work is finished, with the overall contract due to be completed by July 2012.
Ron McAulay, Network Rail Director Scotland, said: “This project will improve access for the thousands of passengers who use Waverley Station on a daily basis and provide improved facilities for less mobile travellers. Our refurbishment plans have been carefully considered and are sensitive to the heritage and history of the location.
“Every effort has been made to minimise disruption for passengers, and to maintain access to the facilities of the Princes Mall, while we deliver this important improvement to the station.”
The Waverley Steps redevelopment is funded by Transport Scotland. The project is progressing in parallel with Network Rail’s wider improvements to Waverley Station, including reglazing of the station roof, improvements to platforms and future planned improvements to the Market Street entrance and Platforms 8 and 9.
