Footbridge
On 14 February 2001, Derby City Council, Midland Main Line and Railtrack agreed a £1,736,000-scheme to connect Derby Midland station to the Pride Park development. Under this Derby City Council provided £270,000 to extend the station footbridge to reach the new Pride Park site and associated car park. In exchange for the Council's funding of the bridge, Railtrack and Midland Main Line entered into a "Covenant With Regard to the Footbridge", that the non-travelling public would be free to cross the footbridge at any time during station hours. The covenant contained exceptions for Christmas Day and Boxing day, and a proviso that the footbridge would not become a public right of way.
On 21 June 2007 Stagecoach Midland Rail Limited (later East Midlands Trains) entered into an a franchise agreement with the Secretary of State for Transport for the East Midlands Franchise. Under Appendix 11, paragraph 11.6(a), East Midlands Trains was required to invest in "project management, procurement, design and station change costs" for the "installation of automatic ticket gate lines" at Derby station.
On 3 April 2009 East Midlands Trains (EMT), the new franchisee of Derby station, sought an amendment from Derby City Council to allow for gating to "reduce unauthorised use of trains and improve security". The Derby City Council consented to the request for automated ticket gate introduction, but allowing Derby City Council to require removal within 42 days should EMT be found in non-compliance of the additional terms. Ticket barriers were introduced at both ends of the extended footbridge on 18 August 2009. The barriers must be left open if they are not manned at both ends, and ad-hoc usage of the footbridge must be allowed at all other times.
- Pass Scheme
Before the start of barrier introduction, posters and a road show were held, introducing the "Pass Scheme" for footbridge users. The publicity resulted in over 800 pass requests in the first weeks before gating. Under the terms of the 2009 amended agreement, the pass scheme covers non-rail pedestrian and cycle users travelling "from Pride Park to central Derby or vice-versa". The agreement requires EMT to make application forms available online as well as in-person at Derby railway station. Pass applications made at the station booking office must be processed immediately, while all other applications including those by email must be posted out within 48 hours. The agreement states that no administration charge is allowed for issuing or renewing of passes, with maximum charge of £5.00 allowed for the cost of replacing each lost pass. EMT stated that passes must be swiped at both ends of the footbridge, and those that are not would be revoked. Derby City Council retains the right to audit withdrawn passes.
Read more about this topic: Derby Railway Station
Famous quotes containing the word footbridge:
“Perfect present has no existence in our consciousness. As I said years ago in Erewhon, it lives but upon the sufferance of past and future. We are like men standing on a narrow footbridge over a railway. We can watch the future hurrying like an express train towards us, and then hurrying into the past, but in the narrow strip of present we cannot see it. Strange that that which is the most essential to our consciousness should be exactly that of which we are least definitely conscious.”
—Samuel Butler (1835–1902)