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Q: What is the Station Hub project?
A: To support Goole’s growth and an anticipated increase in the number of visitors to the town centre, £2.4 million will be invested in the creation of an enhanced transport hub and arrival/departure experience at Goole Station. As part of the project, in the coming months a brand new shuttle bus service will be launched to connect Goole Station with key employment sites on the outskirts of the town and with the railway station at Howden. The Station Hub will create a more welcoming and attractive gateway to Goole town centre, as well as acting as an important hub for pedestrian, cycle and public transport movements. Meanwhile the new shuttle bus service will make it easier for people to travel across the town. It will connect the town centre with the major employment sites located off Tom Pudding Way and with Howden Station, which offers regular trains services to York, Leeds and beyond, as well London.
Q: Why did the Goole Town Deal Board choose to allocate funding towards this project?
A: Goole Station offers regular train services to Hull, Doncaster, Sheffield and East Yorkshire’s coastline. The Goole Town Deal Board sees it as a central ‘anchor’ point within the town centre and the Station Hub project aims to enhance this key asset. A business case submitted to the Government by the Goole Town Deal Board earlier this year clearly demonstrated the significant role that the Station Hub project can play in improving local connectivity by encouraging walking, cycling and the use of public transport, and increasing footfall in the town centre. Alongside the other seven Goole Town Deal-funded projects, an enhanced Station Hub will play an important role in helping to make Goole a more attractive and welcoming place to live, work, invest and enjoy leisure time.
Q: What changes can we expect to see at Goole Station?
A: Working with Network Rail and Northern, the Goole Town Deal Board will use some of the funding it has secured from the Government to carry out physical improvements to Goole Station and the surrounding area. This will include improving the appearance of the pedestrian subways by upgrading the footway, improving lighting, and working with Network Rail to tackle issues with damp walls and establishing how they can be transformed. These changes will help to make them safer and more accessible for everyone. The project also involves enhancing the Edinburgh Street crossing point at the front of the station to make it safer and easier for cyclists and pedestrians to use. This will give people easier access to the town centre’s shops and encourage those arriving by public transport to enjoy other focal points, such as East Riding Leisure Goole and the Market Hall, both of which are also receiving a share of the Goole Town Deal funding.
Q: When will this work start and how long will it take?
A: Work is expected to start later in 2024; the plan is for Network Rail to carry out work to address the water management issues first and then the Goole Town Deal programme will deliver the visual transformation.
Q: Will the subways have to close while the work is carried out?
A: Once the schedule of work has been finalised, details of any disruption to pedestrians and/or motorists will be publicised well in advance. Care will be taken to keep disruption to a minimum.
Q: What’s the idea behind the new shuttle bus service?
A: Known as the Goole & Howden Hopper, the new shuttle bus service, together with the associated infrastructure, such as bus stop signage and shelters, aims to make people’s onward journeys from Goole’s Station Hub easier, as well as helping to connect local people with key employment sites, such as Siemens, the RaisE Business Centre, Croda, Tesco’s Distribution Centre and Guardian Industries. It will also help to make the town centre easier to reach for workers and increase the town’s appeal to potential investors by making Goole more accessible to those travelling from major cities across the North of England and as far afield as London. Many local employers, several of which are represented on the Goole Town Deal Board, believe that this new public transport provision will benefit the local workforce, including those who currently struggle to access employment opportunities due to a lack of transport or being unable to meet the cost of transport. The bus service will operate as a pilot project for two years to gauge whether there is sufficient demand and, if there is, to determine whether additional provision might be needed in the future.
Q: Where will the bus pick up and drop off?
A: The bus service will run between Goole Station, Tom Pudding Way, Glews Garage, Airmyn, the War Memorial in Howden and Howden Station.
Q: What are the hours of operation?
A: It will operate between the hours of 6am and 11pm from Monday to Saturday to try to meet the transport needs of shift workers, as well as those who work typical office hours and people travelling into, and around, Goole for shopping and leisure. Two Goole Town Deal-branded buses, each of which will seat 19 people, will be hired to provide the new service.
Q: How much will it cost to use the new bus service?
A: A £1 flat rate ticket will be available to all users of the new service, regardless of how far they’re traveling and the time of day. There will also be a discounted weekly ticket option for regular users.
Q: When will the new service launch?
A: Brand new buses are currently being manufactured and will be hired using Goole Town Deal funding. It’s expected that the new service will launch before the end of the year. Further details will be announced soon.