More people are traveling to Nottingham by train and over 5 million passengers use the station each year. The Station Partnership wants to increase this number further. The masterplan will help to put improvements in place and its plans include major changes to Nottingham's railway station. A multi-million pound improvement scheme is envisaged with major improvements to facilities and greater passenger capacity. One of the most exciting elements is the extension of Line One of the Nottingham Express Transit over the top of Station Street into the rail station itself. History will be repeating itself here, since the tram will be coming in on a similar axis to the original Great Central Railway line.

An artists impression of how the station could look with the tram as an intergral part of the plans.
This drawing shows a side view through the station. The tram stop is shown in the middle linking to a new station concourse.

The two proposed extensions of NET both need to cross over the top of the station on their way to Chilwell and Clifton and the Station Masterplan will integrate the tram with trains, taxis, buses, pedestrians and cyclists. This provides a wonderful opportunity to create a stunning tram interchange above the railway station, with lifts and escalators linking tram with train services. NET will be a major part of the redevelopment proposals for the station and will help to build a station and public transport system fit for our vibrant and growing city.

The new station will become a world-class interchange - a place where pedestrians, cyclists, car drivers - plus tram, taxi, coach, and bus passengers - can easily transfer between modes of travel. The station will be a place where people want to come, too. Behind the elegant Victorian façade we will build a stunning new concourse where people can shop, sip coffee or simply wait for their connection in comfort.

Artists impression. The tram would pass over this point on a new viaduct.

The Station Masterplan, then, represents profound changes in our transport connections - around the conurbation, to the country, to Europe and beyond, to the wider world. It would be unrealistic to expect a £150 million project to happen overnight. The plans are only illustrative at this stage. Nevertheless, we are confident that a very substantial part will be achieved during the next decade.

Work is being progressed through a partnership of local authorities, train operators, Railtrack and private sector organisations through the Nottingham Railway Stations Steering Group.

In summary the main changes are set out below:

• Calmed Carrington Street with priority given to buses, cycles, disabled and emergency vehicles.
• Existing station frontage and concourse retained and renovated.
• New concourse over tracks extending out from existing concourse to link to new NET stop.
• Lifts, stairs and escalators, linking concourse to train platforms and NET stop.
• New Travel Centre, shops and cafes.
• Bigger railway station and ability to significantly increase the number of passengers.
• New coach station and improved taxi facilities.
• Better car parking for station users.
• New mixed use commercial developments.