Nottingham station has been named as the winner of a national award for ‘Station Excellence’ beating off stiff competition from other major stations including London Waterloo, Brighton, Wakefield Westgate and Gatwick Airport.
The award, presented at the annual Rail Business Awards, follows the £60m completion of Nottingham station’s redevelopment scheme, which has created a new world-class transport hub at the very heart of the city. The new look station has been designed to dramatically enhance the passenger experience, improve the city’s connectivity and encourage greater opportunities for investment and growth, setting the tone for the city’s past, present and exciting future.
Passengers now benefit from much-improved facilities, including better access to other forms of transport, a new range of shops and cafes as well as the stunning restoration of the station’s Edwardian frontage.
Andy Moore, Head of Stations for East Midlands Trains, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for everybody involved in the station improvement scheme. We would like to thank our partners, Network Rail and Nottingham City Council, amongst many others, who have helped us to deliver such a world-class new facility for our customers.
“We’ve been very lucky to have been able to secure such a major investment to improve the station, but of course none of this would have been possible without our great front-line customer service teams, who deliver a fantastic service to our customers day in day out – they truly make Nottingham an award winning station. We were pleased some of our people were able to share the celebrations on the evening – this award is well-deserved recognition of their hard work and commitment throughout this project.”
Phil Verster, Route Managing Director for Network Rail, said: “The transformation of Nottingham station and the rail network which serves it has brought real and lasting benefits for passengers which will be enjoyed for generations. The station has been restored to its former glory with modern, comfortable facilities and retail. This project was a real example of what can be achieved through partnership working between the industry and the local authority and this award is a testament to the hard work of all involved.”
Councillor Jane Urquhart, Nottingham City Council’s Portfolio Holder for Planning and Transportation, said: “This latest award for Nottingham’s restored and redeveloped station is a very welcome acknowledgement of all the work and the vision that was needed to create the basis for a world-class transport hub here and to fulfil what local businesses told us was one of their top three transport priorities.
“The award is another strong indication of how the £12m council investment in the station improvements, funded by the Workplace Parking Levy, is generating benefits for the business community, both by improving our transport links and by stimulating development and regeneration around a showpiece station that has become a great asset to the city.”
East Midlands Trains was also highly commended for Train Operator of the Year and for PR Campaign of the Year for the work carried out with Derby and Derbyshire Rail Forum to celebrate 175 years of Derby’s Railways last year.
Nottingham station has celebrated a string of award wins over the past year, picking up the winner’s award for Urban Heritage at the National Railway Heritage Awards, and for Most Improved Station at the East Midlands Trains’ Best Station Awards. At last year’s Rail Business Awards, East Midlands Trains was also awarded for its comprehensive approach to customer service and information during the Nottingham re-signalling scheme.