Major disruption at Ayr Station due to dangerous old hotel (from August 2018)

[MarkyT]

You couldn't have 4 through platforms due to the layout on the other side - a dual carriageway, fuel station, retail units and the carriage cleaning sidings and yard at Ayr Townhead. You could however lengthen plafroms 1 and 2 to accomodate 7 car units.

Agreed. Extra through platforms would take a very expensive and disruptive reconstruction of Station Bridge to the south of the station, which is only wide enough for two tracks. The yard turnout is immediately to the south of the bridge.

 

[d9009alycidon]

https://www.heraldscotland.com/busi...-pursues-owner-ayr-station-hotel-track-chaos/

As the link suggests, Network rail are trying to obtain compensation from the Malaysian owner of the Ayr Station Hotel for the disruption to services caused by the dangerous condition of the building. Couldn't read the full article as I have reached my limit of free viewings

 

[route:oxford]

Agreed. Extra through platforms would take a very expensive and disruptive reconstruction of Station Bridge to the south of the station, which is only wide enough for two tracks. The yard turnout is immediately to the south of the bridge.

That's a real shame.

Looking at historic pictures, at some point in the past there appears to be 4 tracks South of the station. I'm guessing there were bay platforms to the South at some point (prior to the ring road being built)

 

[TB]

Full article here...

AN ELUSIVE Malaysian businessman who has owned Ayr’s Station Hotel for the best part of a decade is being pursued by Network Rail for the costs it incurred when the adjoining railway station had to be partially closed last year.

Eng Haut Ung has owned the 133-year-old, 75-bedroom hotel next to Ayr Railway Station since 2010, but stopped operating it as a going concern in 2013.

Since then the condition of the building has deteriorated to such a degree that South Ayrshire Council issued a Dangerous Buildings Notice to Mr Ung in March last year before setting up an exclusion zone around the hotel in the summer.

Following further inspection the exclusion zone was extended in August, with the local authority’s chief executive Eileen Howat saying at the time that crumbling and exposed sections of roof presented “a significant and immediate danger to people and places around the station”.


As a result the station’s travel centre and concourse were closed, requiring a temporary ticket office and entrance to be established at the north end of the station, while a number of platforms had to be blocked off and longer trains were barred from using the station altogether. Serious disruption was caused to passenger services between Glasgow Central, Ayr, Girvan, Stranraer and Kilmarnockuntil the hotel was fully contained in December.

Despite being able to get the rail services working again, taxpayer-owned Network Rail, which owns the track and station, had to pay a significant sum to Abellio Scotrail, which manages the station and operates some of the trains that use it, to compensate it for the disruption caused.

It also incurred various costs associated with having the hotel scaffolded and encapsulated, modifying the rail infrastructure near the building and compensating various train and freight operators for the loss of use of the railway lines in the affected area.

In a bid to recover those costs, Network Rail is pursuing Mr Ung in a Court of Session action, which is being led on its behalf by the law firm Dentons.

A Network Rail spokesman declined to say how much money the organisation is seeking to recover, but it is understood to be several hundred thousand pounds.

“It would not be appropriate for us to discuss this matter in detail while legal proceedings are ongoing,” the spokesman added.

South Ayrshire Council, which met most of the cost of establishing the exclusion zone around the hotel, is expected to raise an action against Mr Ung in due course.

Mr Ung, who, according to filings at Companies House, is linked to three addresses in London, was not contactable for comment.


It is understood that he has been an elusive figure throughout all the problems with the hotel, communicating with the other parties through representatives.

According to Companies House he co-owns the hotel via a holding company that is 50% owned by fellow Malaysian businessman Salahudin Yaakob. Both are listed as being contactable at a property in the Bayswater area of London.

Mr Ung is also listed as having a controlling interest in DSS Global Investments, a company incorporated in September last year for the purposes of “buying and selling of own real estate”. That business, which has yet to file any documents, is registered to a residential property in the Fitzrovia area of London.

While it is unclear what Mr Ung and Mr Yaakob intend to do with Ayr Station Hotel, it is possible that the local authority, which is awaiting the results of a full structural report, could order it to be demolished. That report was expected to be delivered this week.

In the meantime, with station staff continuing to have to work from portable cabins, Transport Scotland indicated last week that it is supportive of the construction of a new railway station in the town.

“There is clearly an urgent need to build adequate station facilities at Ayr station, one of ScotRail’s busiest,” a spokesman said.

Noting that a range of options for the station are being considered, South Ayrshire Council leader Douglas Campbell said last week that the current situation with the hotel has created an “opportunity to have a modern railway facility in Ayr”.

 

[380101]

That's a real shame.

Looking at historic pictures, at some point in the past there appears to be 4 tracks South of the station. I'm guessing there were bay platforms to the South at some point (prior to the ring road being built)

Yes there was a bay platform on the south side of the bridge and a through platform where the Ayr townhead entry/exit line is now.

 

[d9009alycidon]

The side by side old maps confirm the presence of the bay and through platform, but as a bit of an enigma the signal box diagram does not show any connections off the down loop to any platforms or sidings, and the lack of spare levers had me scratching my head.

DIagram: https://signalbox.org/diagrams.php?id=492
Map: https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/sid...=55.4554&lon=-4.6268&layers=170&right=BingHyb

There was definitely a path to the bay platform which I believe still exists, the station staff allowed us down through the small pedestrian tunnel under Station bridge when the "Laird of Stranraer" steam hauled railtour went through the station. The sidings to the east of the line served the cattle market and were closed on the 1st of March 1965 and the Dalmellington branch closed to passengers in 1964 so I assume that this platform was disposed of around then and that the signalbox diagram dates from the later half of the 1960s

 

[380101]

The side by side old maps confirm the presence of the bay and through platform, but as a bit of an enigma the signal box diagram does not show any connections off the down loop to any platforms or sidings, and the lack of spare levers had me scratching my head.

DIagram: https://signalbox.org/diagrams.php?id=492
Map: https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/sid...=55.4554&lon=-4.6268&layers=170&right=BingHyb

There was definitely a path to the bay platform which I believe still exists, the station staff allowed us down through the small pedestrian tunnel under Station bridge when the "Laird of Stranraer" steam hauled railtour went through the station. The sidings to the east of the line served the cattle market and were closed on the 1st of March 1965 and the Dalmellington branch closed to passengers in 1964 so I assume that this platform was disposed of around then and that the signalbox diagram dates from the later half of the 1960s

The path off the current platform 4 down under the road bridge is still there and the bay platform structure is still there, albeit under alot of trees and shrubs.

 

[InOban]

The structural report has now been published on social media apparently (can't find a link) and is reported in the Daily Record. Will be in the papers for the next council.

 

[380101]

The structural report has now been published on social media apparently (can't find a link) and is reported in the Daily Record. Will be in the papers for the next council.

It's apparently available on the South Ayrshire Council website - all 500 odd pages of it! Over 1000 defects found, many of them structural. Further report is to be published at the end of the month outlining the various options and costs involved. Hopefully Demolition is at the top of the list so the passengers and staff at Ayr Station can get a fit for purpose, modern 21st century railway station. We're now heading towards the 2nd winter with staff in portacabins and no shelter for passengers waiting for trains.

 

[mark-h]

Report available from South Ayrshire Council

Direct link to pdf

 

[farci]

https://www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk/station-building/
Excellent update on council website

‘The Council is taking action at the building adjacent to Ayr Station, which includes the former Station Hotel, in line with our statutory obligations – under the Building (Scotland) Act 2003 – around public safety and keeping people safe.

We’ve had to take this action as public safety issues raised in a Dangerous Building Notice served in March 2018 have not been sufficiently addressed.

As a result, an exclusion zone has been put in place around the building to protect people from the significant and immediate dangers presented by the current condition of the building.

Update: Wednesday 4 September 2019
We have received the factual structural condition report from the consultants for the privately owned building adjacent to Ayr Train Station.

The report is based on the condition of the building and highlights areas of defect. View the report [12.7MB].

A full report will be issued to the Council around the end of September, detailing remedial action and anticipated costs.’

 

[BRX]

It's apparently available on the South Ayrshire Council website - all 500 odd pages of it! Over 1000 defects found, many of them structural. Further report is to be published at the end of the month outlining the various options and costs involved. Hopefully Demolition is at the top of the list so the passengers and staff at Ayr Station can get a fit for purpose, modern 21st century railway station. We're now heading towards the 2nd winter with staff in portacabins and no shelter for passengers waiting for trains.

There's no reason a fit for purpose modern station, and the historic building, can't co-exist, other than cost. Looking at that report, it would seem the cost of fixing it up is going to be high.

 

[380101]

There's no reason a fit for purpose modern station, and the historic building, can't co-exist, other than cost. Looking at that report, it would seem the cost of fixing it up is going to be high.

to have a fit for purpose modern station which includes all the appropriate staff facilities means the rot box of a hotel needs to be demolished. The hotel sits on the station footprint and the complete ground floor of the north wing was the staff and management offices, bothy, booking on point and network rail local ops managers offices.

 

[BRX]

to have a fit for purpose modern station which includes all the appropriate staff facilities means the rot box of a hotel needs to be demolished. The hotel sits on the station footprint and the complete ground floor of the north wing was the staff and management offices, bothy, booking on point and network rail local ops managers offices.

The hotel building could be done up to provide all those facilities. But like I say, I expect cost will be the barrier.

 

[farci]

to have a fit for purpose modern station which includes all the appropriate staff facilities means the rot box of a hotel needs to be demolished. The hotel sits on the station footprint and the complete ground floor of the north wing was the staff and management offices, bothy, booking on point and network rail local ops managers offices.

Does the railway serve the town of Ayr or does the railway dictate to the town? Would we have knocked down St Pancras because it was a 'bit rough'?

 

[158756]

There's no reason a fit for purpose modern station, and the historic building, can't co-exist, other than cost. Looking at that report, it would seem the cost of fixing it up is going to be high.

The problem is there is no reason to pay for it - there is no long term future for a hotel or any other use of such a large and expensive building in Ayr; the historic building would simply exist for the sake of existing, until it falls into disrepair again or burns down.

 

[GusB]

I hate seeing old buildings being demolished, but when they've been left to deteriorate to the extent that they become completely uneconomic to repair, surely it's time to put it out of its misery. There will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth, but that should have happened long before the building was allowed to reach its current state.

 

[380101]

Does the railway serve the town of Ayr or does the railway dictate to the town? Would we have knocked down St Pancras because it was a 'bit rough'?

The railway serves the town, but currently it's not serving it to its full potential due to the hotel issue. No shelter for passengers, reduced platform lengths, no retail facilities, no decent toilet facilities etc. All due to the hotel falling to bits. Ayr deserves a fit for purpose station and it'll never get it if the hotel remains standing.

Also, the staff require proper 21st century facilities that couldn't be accomodated in the space they had in the hotel building previously. This whole issue could have been avoided if Network Rail, ScotRail and South Ayrshire Council had acted 10years ago to force the owners into doing something when the building was still in a decent enough condition to justify saving.

I don't think people outside of Ayr realise the stress and inconvenience this whole debacle is causing passengers and staff, who will be facing a second winter of uncertainty. The worst part of the whole carry on is that it put a hard working independant coffee shop within the concourse out of business overnight and made 5 people unemployed when they abruptly closed the station concourse on 30th June 2018.

 

[greyman42]

Did they have any success in tracing the owner?

 

[380101]

Did they have any success in tracing the owner?

Yes, although he has not been very cooperative with the council. His latest communication with them (reported in our local paper) was that he wanted to have his own structural survey carried out as he wants to dispute the report commisoned by the Council along with the costs incurred to date by the council, NR and ScotRail.

 

[hwl]

Yes, although he has not been very cooperative with the council. His latest communication with them (reported in our local paper) was that he wanted to have his own structural survey carried out as he wants to dispute the report commissioned by the Council along with the costs incurred to date by the council, NR and ScotRail.

He is in for a rude awakening and won't have much luck on the costs front + any survey that dissents will get pulled apart in court (If he can find anyone that doesn't agree with council/NR.)

 

[BRX]

I hate seeing old buildings being demolished, but when they've been left to deteriorate to the extent that they become completely uneconomic to repair, surely it's time to put it out of its misery. There will be much wailing and gnashing of teeth, but that should have happened long before the building was allowed to reach its current state.

In the (probably very unlikely) event that costs are recoverable from its owner, then it would be nice to see it restored to safe condition at their expense, if only as an incentive for other negligent owners of historic buildings to get their act together.

 

[d9009alycidon]

Surprised that there has not been an "accidental" major fire in the scructure, a method still popular in Glasgow for disposing of sites that the owners want redeveloped without going through the proper channels

 

[Macwomble]

Surprised that there has not been an "accidental" major fire in the scructure, a method still popular in Glasgow for disposing of sites that the owners want redeveloped without going through the proper channels

Don't be giving anyone any ideas!

 

[380101]

Surprised that there has not been an "accidental" major fire in the scructure, a method still popular in Glasgow for disposing of sites that the owners want redeveloped without going through the proper channels

I hope for this everyday I drive into work...alas it hasn't happened yet!

 

[och aye]

Potentially 5 years of this situation being in limbo!

https://www.ayradvertiser.com/news/18227508.ayr-face-another-five-years-scaffolding-station-hotel

SCAFFOLDING that currently supports Ayr’s Station Hotel could remain there for the next five years.

Transport chiefs have warned that the structural support around the hotel, would only be sustainable up until 2025, and that a decision on its future must be made by then.

In a letter penned to dedicated campaigner Esther Clark from Transport Scotland, a spokesperson reveals that the current encapsulation would only last so long if is regularly inspected.

The letter to Esther reads: “I have been advised that the current building safety encapsulation can remain in place for approximately 5 years, provided there are regular inspections to ensure it remains secure.

“It is clearly desirable that a decision on the building’s future should be made well within that timeframe.”

Esther Clark who has campaigned tirelessly to save the crumbling building, hopes that a decision on its future can be made sooner rather than later.

She told the Advertiser: “There is a feeling around that this can’t continue much longer, something needs to be done.”

Esther had written to Michael Matheson Cabinet Secretary for Transport, and Fiona Jane Hyslop is a Scottish politician who is the Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Tourism and External Affairs, but was told the query would be dealt with Transport Scotland.

The letter also reveals that a task force headed up by Transport Scotland’s Rail Director, Bill Reeve met on December, 4 last year where it was agreed that a feasibility study should be undertaken to assist South Ayrshire Council in coming to a decision in the future of the building.

Last year, a structural report carried out by Mott MacDonald for SAC shone light on some 1,000 defects, and that repairs would cost up to £10 million.

The Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity is expected to meet up with SAC in the coming weeks.

A spokesperson for South Ayrshire Council said: "The Council took action to secure the dangerous building in 2018 under the powers available to it through the Building (Scotland) Act 2003. The building remains in private ownership but the Council as part of the Scottish Government Task Force is involved in discussions around its future.

 

[Carntyne]

The council need to stop messing around and pull it down.

 

[BR 45111]

It’s been really sad to read the current predicament at Ayr station . Although from Sheffield, in 1980 whilst on a family holiday as a teenager me and my brother got bored as teenagers do ! So we went down to the station and 40yrs later and still with a big interest in railways I have fond memories that it all started at Ayr. I hope the current situation is brought to a swift end to the satisfaction of all parties though on reading previous posts this appears unlikely.

 

[Clayton]

The council need to stop messing around and pull it down.

The council don’t own the unsafe building.

 

[Carntyne]

Can't remember claiming they did!