Ambitious plans to redevelop Bristol Temple Meads station as a gateway to the city and its enterprise zone will be unveiled today at a major conference.
Called Delivering the Vision, the event will show the 300-strong audience what has been happening in the Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone since it was officially declared open for business in April 2012, as well as looking at future developments.
Key to this is the work Network Rail will carry out at Temple Meads, creating a modern transport hub at the historic station, including using Brunel’s original buildings as a terminus for the new high-speed trains that will be introduced under electrification of the London-Bristol line.
Patrick Hallgate, route managing director for Network Rail Western, said ahead of today’s conference: “Transforming Temple Meads railway station is fundamental to the future success of the enterprise zone. We are moving on track with this ambition as we continue our discussion with the government on funding whilst getting started on investigating the Victorian structure. Being one of the busiest stations in the country and one of the most congested, we believe the redevelopment is much needed. We are already seeing 9m passengers through here a year and we are predicting that to increase by up to 44% by 2020.”
Figures suggest that, out of 24 enterprise Zones dotted across the UK, Bristol is one of the most successful in terms of jobs growth. Approximately 450 jobs have come to Temple Quarter since April 2012, either as new jobs with existing companies expanding or jobs created from businesses relocating there.
Bristol Mayor George Ferguson welcomed the redevelopment of Temple Meads. He said: “My vision for Bristol is to create the most welcoming city that gives a great first impression and embraces people arriving here. The redevelopment of Temple Meads railway station in the heart of the enterprise zone is key to delivering this vision. In five years’ time, we want passengers to arrive in the rapidly developing Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone and have a transformed arrival experience, coming through Brunel's rejuvenated station, past a buzzing Arena Island, before exiting onto a new station plaza at the start of the Brunel Mile into the city.
“In the last year, the building blocks for the zone have started to be put in place. Space is being filled in the existing buildings such as the Engine Shed, Temple Studios and Rivergate; new building developments are coming forward at Glass Wharf and Paintworks; and alongside this, projects like Creative Common are making innovative use of derelict sites to ensure Temple Quarter becomes a desirable place that people want to live and play, as well as work.”
West of England Local Enterprise Partnership chief executive Paul Wilson, who will also be speaking at the event, said: “Temple Quarter Enterprise Zone is the flagship project for the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership and is tasked, alongside the region’s four other enterprise areas, with creating jobs and delivering growth.
“We need to ensure we get the infrastructure right to enable the jobs growth and we are now seeing funding being lined up and starting to be spent – including almost £21m from the LEP’s Revolving Infrastructure Fund that has been allocated to improve the infrastructure in the Zone and over £11m from the Government’s Urban Broadband fund so that we can offer world-class connectivity here. We have also created a dedicated inward investment service to attract investment and support home-grown growth and this will act as a ‘shopfront’ to the West of England, based in the new Engine Shed.”
