Great Yarmouth railway station. Credit: Greater Anglia

Greater Anglia has invested more than £700,000 in improvements at Great Yarmouth railway station as the town prepares to welcome visitors for the summer season.

The package of work includes upgraded waiting room facilities, refurbished toilets, a new Changing Places toilet, improved customer information and ongoing work to improve the fabric of the station building.

Additional weekday morning and evening peak services are also now running between Norwich and Great Yarmouth, following the timetable change on Sunday 17 May.

The additional services are:

• 08.04 Norwich to Great Yarmouth, Mondays to Fridays
• 08.44 Great Yarmouth to Norwich, Mondays to Fridays
• 18.02 Norwich to Great Yarmouth, Mondays to Fridays
• 18.44 Great Yarmouth to Norwich, Mondays to Fridays

The following projects have recently been completed at Great Yarmouth railway station:

• A live onward bus information screen has been installed to help passengers arriving at the station find onward journey times from the nearby bus stop. The screen is jointly funded by Norfolk County Council using government funding to improve bus services across Norfolk. It shows up-to-the-minute information and helps passengers make quicker, more informed connections between train and onward bus services.
  
• A new Changing Places toilet has opened, significantly improving accessibility for disabled passengers and their carers. The facility, installed by Greater Anglia in partnership with the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership and Muscular Dystrophy UK, with funding support from the Department for Transport, is specially designed to meet the needs of people who cannot use standard accessible toilets.
  
• Earlier this year, an art exhibition created by blind and partially sighted people, opened in the waiting room. Led by Essex Sight Loss Councils, it highlighted the realities of living with sight loss. The grant was awarded to Thomas Pocklington Trust and was supported with funding from Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Improvement Fund.
  
• Greater Anglia has also upgraded the waiting room and refurbished the existing toilet facilities. The waiting room has received new seating and flooring, a fresh coat of paint, more efficient heating and lighting, and a new information screen showing train running information. The existing male, female and accessible toilets have also been completely refurbished to improve facilities for customers.
  
• A Broads Discovery Hub has been installed in collaboration with the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership, following a grant from Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Improvement Fund. The Discovery Hub consists of a series of oak plinths located near the railway station and the Bure Bridge entrance to the town. They were created and will be maintained by the Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership and Broads Trust, the charity that supports projects across Norfolk and Suffolk.
  
• A life-saving defibrillator has been installed at the station, funded by Greater Anglia’s Customer and Community Improvement Fund following a successful application by Norfolk-based charity Heart2Heart.
  
• An ongoing project to improve the fabric of the station building is nearing completion and includes the new glazing, roof repairs and redecoration or the station canopy.

Andrew Goodrum, Greater Anglia’s Infrastructure & Major Projects Director, Greater Anglia, said:

“We are very pleased to have invested more than £700,000 in improvements at Great Yarmouth railway station ahead of the busy summer season.

“These upgrades are making the station more welcoming, accessible and easier to use, while additional weekday peak services are giving passengers more options between Norwich and Great Yarmouth.

“With strong punctuality on the route, rail is an attractive option for people travelling to and from the town and the east coast.”

Martin Halliday, Community Rail Development Officer for Community Rail Norfolk, said:

“The Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership welcomes recent improvements by Greater Anglia at Great Yarmouth station.

“Over the past few years, the partnership has worked to make the station a more welcoming gateway to the town which has seen us fund new planters, image panels, a refurbishment of the night entrance with new cycle storage plus numerous way-marking and welcome signage.

“In addition, we partnered with Muscular Dystrophy UK to help fund a Changing Places toilet facility for the station and, through Greater Anglia’s Customer & Community Improvement Fund, worked with the Broads Trust to create a bespoke information hub which signposts visitors to the town, the Wherryman’s Way and other walking routes as well as information on local history, the railway and the area’s natural environment.”

The package of improvements at Great Yarmouth railway station is part of Greater Anglia’s ongoing work to improve journeys for passengers.

It also reflects the wider approach now being taken across GBR Anglia, with c2c, Greater Anglia and Network Rail Anglia working more closely together under one leadership team to improve planning, strengthen day-to-day coordination and support better delivery across infrastructure, train services and customer experience.