Architecture
St Pauls bus station is dominated by an elliptical roof standing on twelve steel columns. The concrete roof covers an area of 3,171 m2 (34,132 sq ft), beneath which are three bus islands, consisting of a total of eleven bus stands. A smaller aerofoil covers a further three stands. 2.4 metres (8 ft) tall glass screens shelter pedestrians from bus fumes and provide information on bus routes. At each of the bus stands is hardwood bench set within a low concrete wall. The benches were designed to be vandal-proof. At its longest point, the canopy is 80 metres (262 ft) in length and 45 metres (148 ft) wide at its widest point. The roof is covered in ten circular holes with hoods to deflect the wind. There are seventeen similar rooflights in the canopy. The concourse area is two storeys tall and consists of large concrete walls, supporting the columns for the canopy roof. The bus station covers a total area of 9,470 m2 (101,934 sq ft).
Allford Hall Monaghan Morris designed the building for Centro. The structural engineers were Atelier One, Shepherd Construction Ltd were the contractors, Watkins Dally were the landscape architects and Clark Smith Partnership were the civil engineers. The project cost £6.5 million.
A small satellite section was added to the bus station in 2001.
Despite the extensive profile, there have been calls for it to be demolished. Most notably, Walsall South MP Bruce George said that Centro should consider replacing the bus station due to the complexity of the layout. Bus drivers have complained that there were too many bends and that it quickly became overcrowded, which may have contributed to two incidents at the bus station, in one of which a local woman died.
In December 2008, the West Midlands Passenger Transport Executive (CENTRO), decided to merge Stands K & L in the main bus station. This resulted in an extra stand being added to the row housing the Travel & Tourist Information Shop, with one being removed in the middle row. No Stand Alterations were caused by this stand, as no extra stands were created, just rearranged. Two years later in December 2010, the station reverted back to its old layout.
In July 2011 the nearby Bradford Place station and the toilets in the main station underwent an extensive refurbishment. Both re-opened during early September 2011.
Read more about this topic: Walsall St Pauls Bus Station
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