Transport for London won planning approval for an interim extension to Hammersmith Bus station. The London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Planning Committee agreed to grant a five-year temporary planning consent for the scheme.

Work on the interim station is scheduled to begin in May and be completed by the end of 2004.

The scheme will provide an extended bus station with an information facility, cycle racks and full CCTV coverage. The new facility will be connected to the existing bus station, shopping centre and underground station by a pedestrian link.

Not only the design of the new bus station is controversial, but also the closure of the Emerald Centre (see Emerald Centre to become bus station "disrupting Hammersmith town centre landscape). The new bus station will be built where the centre, used for 50 year by residents and several community groups, is currently located.

TfL is now in negotiations with the Hammersmith Community Trust, which runs the Emerald Centre, with a view to relocating it to an alternative site nearby. According to TfL, the centre should eventually benefit from improved facilities.

The interim bus station will relieve pressure on the existing bus station, now operating at capacity. Routes that currently terminate in Hammersmith Grove will be brought into the bus station, improving interchange for passengers. Development of this new facility will also allow TfL to carry out work needed to make the existing Hammersmith Bus Station fully accessible to all users.

March 6, 2004

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