Railway Station To Finally Get New Toilets & Waiting Room

Detailed plans have been announced for a new waiting room and toilets at Market Harborough Railway Station.

They will be in a new building on the northbound platform,

Network Rail is set to begin construction by this autumn, with the project due to be completed by March 2022.

In the meantime, improvements will be made to temporary toilets, which have been in use outside the front of the station for the past 18 months.

Questions are being asked why the latest improvements were not included in the £53m revamp of the station, completed in 2019, as a consultation into the latest plans gets underway.

Rail campaigner and Councillor Phil Knowles spoke to Hfm:

Market Harborough Railway Station

Network Rail say the redevelopment of the toilet block is a separate ongoing investment, with the support of East Midlands Railway, while the upgrade at the station, which included line speed improvements and the Access for All bridge, has brought benefits for passengers.

The existing platform building will be demolished, as it’s deemed no longer fit for purpose, and improvements will also be made to the ramp from the booking office to Platform 1, to make it less steep.

Gavin Crook, Principal Programme Sponsor for Network Rail, said: “We want to thank passengers using Market Harborough station for their patience whilst the permanent toilets are closed.

“We have a proposed design for the project, which includes a new toilet block, disabled facilities and a waiting room on platform 1. Our contractors are currently carrying out a user group consultation on this design to complete the final checks necessary to move forward into construction by Autumn this year.

“We are working closely with East Midlands Railway on a detailed plan so we can carry out this work as soon as possible, whilst keeping disruption for passengers to a minimum.

“Our teams are also carrying out improvements to the temporary toilets in March and will be making more available for the duration of the project.”