New Bradford bus station will take five years to build

New bus station ready in five years - authority A new bus station for Bradford city centre will take around five years to plan and build, according to a regional transport expert.

Although Bradford Interchange is set to reopen on 5 January after closing last year due to structural damage, the building will be operating beyond its 50-year lifespan.

A recent report to owner and operator West Yorkshire Combined Authority recommended plans were put in place as soon as possible to eventually replace the ageing facility.

The new station will likely incorporate both bus services and a stop on the planned Bradford to Leeds tram system.

When asked by the Local Democracy Reporting Service when any new station would be built, director of transport operations at West Yorkshire Combined Authority Dave Haskins said: "The time it has taken to build other bus stations has been around five years."

He said while the re-opening of the Interchange would cost about £500,000, costs were likely to spiral the longer it remained open.

Mr Haskins said: "It is like an old car - you could realistically keep extending its life, but how much do you spend?"

'Better connected city' Bradford Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe said there was a "real opportunity" to create a new station once trams were back in the city.

"With the Interchange coming to the end of its life, we can look at how we can make Bradford a better connected city for the next 50 to 100 years," she said.

"The new infrastructure we are putting in place will be there for decades."

She said it could also link up with the new rail station planned for the city centre.

West Yorkshire Mayor Tracy Brabin said: "Having seen Halifax's new bus station, we know what a beautiful station looks like.

"We need to focus on the future – Bradford deserves a beautiful bus station.

She said the mass transit system for West Yorkshire was mentioned in last week's Budget, showing that the new government was committed to the scheme.

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