Misplaced Pages

#310689

32-532: Belfast Grand Central station (originally the Belfast Transport Hub ) is a railway and bus station in the city centre of Belfast , Northern Ireland . It has replaced Great Victoria Street railway station and the Europa Buscentre . It is built next to its predecessors, in a new neighbourhood called Weaver's Cross. The first bus service, to Dublin , departed from the station on 8 September 2024, and

64-464: A new neighbourhood which Translink has named 'Weaver's Cross'. This 100,000 m site is planned to comprise leisure, residential and commercial facilities. Weaver's Cross, combined with the station and a rejuvenated Glengall Street, Hope Street and Durham Street, will become Station Quarter , Belfast's ninth Cultural Quarter . By February 2021, the first stage of enabling works was completed by construction contractor company Graham Construction, clearing

96-520: A series of concession activities in the launch and construction phase for a total amount of €450 million. Sacyr seeks to bring together all the concessions it holds in a new subsidiary, Sacyr Concesiones. Abertis also agreed with Citigroup to buy assets in Spain and Chile for a value of €621 million. Also, Atlantia would acquire stakes in toll roads in Portugal , Brazil and Chile for €420 million. In July 2022,

128-536: A truly integrated bus-rail station for the first time in Belfast's history. Northern Ireland Railways (NIR) closed the railway part of the station altogether in 1976 and the original buildings were demolished, being replaced by the Europa Hotel and Great Northern Mall. Railway services resumed, however, in 1995 with the opening of a rebuilt Great Victoria Street station, integrated with the Europa Buscentre . The station

160-483: Is a commercial, residential and leisure development in Belfast developed and constructed by Multi Development UK in over 6 years. At approximately 800,000 ft (75,000m ) and costing £400m it is the biggest and one of the most expensive property developments ever undertaken in Northern Ireland. It opened on 6 March 2008. Its anchor tenant at nearly 200,000 ft (18,581m ) is the largest House of Fraser that

192-479: Is located on a 8-hectare (860,000 sq ft) site owned by The Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (trading as Translink ) between the former Europa Buscentre and Belfast Great Victoria Street railway station, both of which it replaces. The station's capacity is designed to cater for twenty million passenger journeys annually, more than the twelve million combined capacity of the pre-existing bus and railway station. In addition to rail and bus improvements,

224-586: The Radisson Hotel and an award-winning public landscaped park. The Gasworks has been internationally recognised as a key example of brownfield regeneration in Europe and has won numerous awards in relation to all aspects of its development. The initial phase is now almost complete and the City Council are currently preparing a master plan in preparation for the commencement of Phase II development. Victoria Square

256-470: The 8-hectare (860,000 sq ft) for construction. The next stage of development, from February 2021, involved the relocating of bus engineering and operation facilities to new accommodation, and the construction of a new bus wash facility, engineering garage, storage facilities and a bus parking area. The Main Works and Infrastructure Enhancement phases of the project were expected to be conducted in 2022, with

288-506: The Bangor Line, the station operates a half-hourly stopping service to Bangor on weekdays and Saturdays, with additional express services at peak times. On Sundays, the line reduces to hourly operation between Grand Central and Bangor. The Derry~Londonderry Line operates an hourly service to Derry~Londonderry on weekdays and Saturdays, with some extra peak services terminating at Coleraine . On Sundays, this services remains hourly, however

320-465: The Citigroup fund and Sacyr was announced, whereby Sacyr disposed of its subsidiary for €7,887 million, €2,874 million in cash plus €5,013 million in net debt that would be assumed by the fund. The agreement did not include concessions under development and concessions in operation that were not highways. In addition, the group would later acquire from Citigroup a series of toll roads worth €478.3 million and

352-739: The Europa Buscentre was to be Saturday, 7 September, 2024. On 4 September 2024, Translink invited the press for a final preview of Grand Central Station before its official opening. It also announced that the station's first departure would be the X1 Goldline bus service to Dublin Busáras , scheduled for 8 September 2024 at 05:00 UTC+1. On 8 September 2024, Belfast Grand Central welcomed its first bus passengers, with services to Dublin Busáras via Dublin Airport and Belfast International Airport . Amir Kumat

SECTION 10

#1732845009311

384-459: The Grand Central enabling works scheduled for the summer. All stations between these two points were closed, with a temporary shuttle service running between Portadown and Lisburn. Enterprise passengers traveling to/from Belfast took a bus to/from Newry train station. On 8 July 2024, Translink launched a series of 11 videos across all its social media channels titled " The Grand Connection: Behind

416-712: The Scenes at Belfast Grand Central Station ." These videos showcased the progress made since the closure of Great Victoria Street station in May and highlighted how stakeholders and interest groups contributed to the station's development. On 13 August 2024, the first trains began arriving at the station for driver training runs. A NIR 4000 Class train operated these runs between Belfast Lanyon Place and Belfast Grand Central and Adelaide Depot . On 19 August 2024, Translink announced that bus operations at Belfast Grand Central would commence on Sunday, 8 September 2024. The final day of operations at

448-695: The company was fined €16.7 million, along with five other contractors, by the Comisión Nacional de los Mercados y la Competencia (CNMC) for bidding collusion in public tenders for building and civil infrastructure works. Major projects involving the business include the Torre Sacyr Vallehermoso , completed in 2008. Sacyr was the largest shareholder in the Spanish oil company Repsol YPF , holding an approximate 20% stake. On December 20, 2011, Repsol YPF bought half of Sacyr's stake back in order to save

480-698: The development and 2,000 will be employed there. Northern Ireland Railways provide access on the Belfast Suburban Rail network with stations in proximity to the city centre. Sacyr The company was founded in 1986 as Sociedad Anónima Caminos y Regadíos and was renamed Sacyr in 1991. The company received their first concession in 1996, which was the Chilean El Elquí highway. From this moment on, it began its expansion by adding concessions in Chile and Spain and making purchases such as that of Avasa,

512-551: The first rail service, also to Dublin, departed from the station on 13 October 2024. The first railway station in Ulster was opened on the site of the former Great Victoria Street station in 1839 on the Ulster Railway . It became the northern terminus of the GNR 's non-stop Dublin –Belfast express in 1947, and in 1962, platform 5 was removed to allow construction of a bus station providing

544-540: The former Great Victoria Street, it is the terminus of Northern Ireland Railways' Derry , Larne , Bangor and Newry lines. This also means that the Portadown to Bangor route no longer has direct through traffic and is divided into two separate lines. The Enterprise express service to Dublin has moved from Lanyon Place as part of the project, meaning the flagship express service between Belfast and Dublin terminates here. The bus station features 26 stands, eight more than

576-412: The highway between Bilbao and Zaragoza . In 2002, it acquired 24.5% of Vallehermoso, a leading Spanish housing business founded in 1921. In 2003 it merged with Vallehermoso to form Sacyr Vallehermoso. In June 2006, Isolux Corsán presented a takeover bid for Europistas at a price of 4.8 euros per share, which meant valuing the company at 646 million euros. On December 1, 2008, an agreement between

608-488: The last train of the day. No trains stop at Scarva and Poyntzpass on Sundays. The first bus to use Grand Central's bus station was the X1 Goldline bus service to Dublin Busáras on 8 September 2024. [REDACTED] Media related to Belfast Grand Central station at Wikimedia Commons Belfast City Centre Belfast City Centre is the central business district of Belfast , Northern Ireland . The city centre

640-483: The new Grand Central station was scheduled to open in autumn 2024. On 29 May 2024, the first " The Grand Connection Roadshow " was held at Lanyon Place Train Station to communicate plans for the facility. The roadshow toured various locations throughout Northern Ireland, including shopping centres and train and bus stations. On 3 July 2024, Translink closed the rail line between Lisburn and Belfast Lanyon Place to facilitate

672-545: The oldest continually published English language daily newspaper still in existence, was originally located in the area at 55 Donegall Street, site of a massive Provisional IRA carbomb in March 1972, in which seven people died and 148 were injured. The city centre is now centred on Donegall Square (location of the City Hall ), Donegall Place, Royal Avenue , Castle Junction, High Street and surrounding streets and alleys. Over

SECTION 20

#1732845009311

704-527: The past decade the city Centre has seen expansive redevelopment. The Laganside Development includes the landmark Waterfront Hall , BT Tower, Hilton Hotel , Odyssey Complex and various riverside apartment complexes. The Gasworks Business Park is owned by Belfast City Council and managed by the Councils Estates Management Unit. The site contains commercial offices, call centres , small business units, housing, cafés & restaurants,

736-399: The previous Europa Bus Centre. Seating is available throughout, with priority seating at select stands. The station also offers a range of amenities, including ATMs, vending machines, automated ticket machines, a help desk, a water refill station, and a sensory pod . There are accessible male and female restrooms, as well as Changing Places facilities. The area surrounding the hub will become

768-492: The project due for completion in 2024/2025. The project was said to potentially create 400 jobs over a five-year period. The main works of the project were delivered by a joint venture of Farrans Construction and Sacyr , with railway system works by Babcock . The Busway Bridge was completed in August 2023. In April 2024, it was announced that Great Victoria Street station would close permanently on 10 May 2024, several months before

800-508: The reopening of the Belfast to Lisburn Line. Rail services began operating from the station on Sunday, 13 October 2024. The first departure was the 08:05 Enterprise service to Dublin Connolly, with a once-a-week stop at Lisburn and Lurgan , continuing on to Portadown , Newry , Dundalk Clarke , Drogheda MacBride , and finally, Dublin Connolly . The first arrival was the 09:15 Translink NI Railways service from Portadown. On board this train

832-513: The retailer has opened in the UK (as opposed to taken over). In March 2006, the government gave the go-ahead for a £300m regeneration of a run-down part of Belfast city centre, in the Cathedral Quarter , which could create up to 2,000 jobs. Plans include a new shopping centre, anchored by a department store. The project will not be completed until 2011. It is estimated that 1,000 people will help build

864-446: The same alternating terminus pattern - this has the effect of providing a two-hourly service to all stations beyond Whitehead. The Portadown/Newry Line operates a half-hourly stopping service to Portadown on weekdays and Saturdays, with additional services (some operating as expresses) at peak times to Lisburn and Newry . On Sundays the line reduces to hourly operation between Grand Central and Portadown, with Newry only being served by

896-589: The station also has cycle and taxi provision for enhanced connectivity, with 300 cycle parking spaces.It is said to be the "largest integrated transport facility on the island of Ireland ". During construction the transport hub was described as one of the Northern Ireland Executive 's "flagship projects". The new station has eight platforms (double that of Great Victoria Street and Belfast Lanyon Place ), composed of four island platforms with two faces each. Two of these islands are short and two long. Like

928-897: The terminus alternates every hour between Derry~Londonderry and Portrush . This results in only a two-hourly service to all stations beyond Coleraine. The Enterprise currently operates as an hourly service on the Dublin Line to Dublin Connolly via Portadown, Newry, Dundalk Clarke and Drogheda MacBride from Monday to Saturday. The Sunday service is two-hourly. On the Larne Line, the station operates half-hourly services on weekdays and Saturdays. The terminus for these services alternates every half-hour between Larne Harbour and Whitehead . Additional peak-time services operate to Carrickfergus and Larne Town . This pattern results in an hourly service to Larne Harbour. The service reduces to hourly after 7pm. On Sundays, an hourly service runs on this line with

960-575: Was originally centred on the Donegall Street area. Donegall Street is now mainly a business area, but with expanding residential and entertainment development as part of the Cathedral Quarter scheme - St. Anne's, Belfast's Anglican cathedral is located here. The Roman Catholic cathedral St. Peter's is located a little to the west of the city centre. Two of Belfast's three main newspapers - The Belfast Telegraph and The Irish News are also located nearby. The News Letter , which claims to be

992-511: Was reportedly the first passenger to enter the station, heading for Belfast International Airport. The former Europa Buscentre was converted into a corridor connecting Belfast Grand Central to Great Victoria Street. On 23 September 2024, the cross-border Enterprise service began trial runs at the new station, in advance of its relocation from Belfast Lanyon Place. On 3 October 2024, Translink announced that train services at Belfast Grand Central Station would commence on 13 October 2024, which marked

Belfast Grand Central station - Misplaced Pages Continue

1024-519: Was the Minister for Infrastructure, John O'Dowd . Also present at the commencement of services was Translink's CEO, Chris Conway. The first 2000 passengers to use the station received a commemorative ticket. Some issues with the scheme have arisen, including: Grand Central acts as the terminus for all active railway lines in Northern Ireland, with the exception of the Coleraine-Portrush line . On

#310689