Happy 86th birthday to Leeds City station, which opened in May 1938.
To celebrate, let’s take a look at some of the major station improvements we’ve made in recent years – all designed to improve your experience.
Track upgrades
In January 2022, we completed Leeds’ biggest track upgrade in 20 years.
More than 200 staff remodelled the track layout between platforms four and six between Saturday 25 December 2021 and Monday 3 January 2022.
The new layout improved the way trains move in and out of the station and helped reduce delays to your journeys.
During this time, we also extended platform seven to make space for longer trains, giving you more seats. Meanwhile, we renewed 700 metres of track and overhead line equipment – which powers electric trains – to help make your services more reliable.
It came after we finished building the brand-new platform zero in January 2021.
Matt Rice, a route director, said at the time: “We have invested heavily into Leeds railway station to create a transport hub which the city can be proud of and which offers a warm welcome to visitors.
“The completion of the platform is a huge part of this work and will make journeys more punctual and reliable for all those travelling to, from or through Leeds. The platform will help to make things easier during times of disruption, meaning fewer delays for passengers and getting them on the move again more quickly.”
Ever wondered why we have platform zeros? Check this piece out to understand why.
A greener, kinder and considered approach
Our work to make more space for more trains at Leeds achieved an excellent rating from BREEAM Infrastructure, a sustainability assessment specialist that assesses and rates civil engineering.
Design and building teams worked together at the station to reduce materials and waste, which meant we saved more than 144 tonnes of CO2e. This included reducing the quantity of materials used and working in a more efficient way.
For example, drones and 360-degree cameras captured videos and imagery – saving time and money by reducing the number of surveys carried out in person.
We also pre-fabricated parts off-site to reduce the impact of the work on station visitors and nearby residents.
Our teams carried out social and charitable initiatives were also weaved into this project where possible.
Such as donating the Victorian canopy columns from the project to Bolton Heritage Railway. We also raised £8,500 at the station for charity St George’s Crypt support homeless and vulnerable people in the city.
Buskers at the station
In April, we partnered with Leeds Beckett University and marketing agency Found in Music to offer local musicians a busking spot inside the station.
The project is an extension of the original Busk in London scheme, which has encouraged thousands of musicians to busk in London’s busiest railway stations since 2015.
We hope to support local musicians in Leeds in a similar way. In fact, this is the first station outside of London to have a regular busking spot. You can find it on the station’s main concourse close to the retailer Marks & Spencer.
We’re also hoping to expand the scheme further to other stations around the country in the future.
