December 2023 saw the new southern entrance to Sunderland Station opened. A £16.3 million project to transform the transport hub has been ongoing with the hope that it will prove to be a catalyst to create business and further investment opportunities to support the central business district and retail rejuvenation in the heart of the city.
The southern entrance of the station features a large glass wrap around design and includes a new ticket office and reception, public toilets, retail space and cafes, comfortable waiting areas. There is also a mezzanine level that has office space reserved for rail industry staff.
Sunderland City Council are now campaigning for support for the next phases to create a massively transformed city station over the coming years, with a vision to revamp the northern entrance along with platform level works to increase capacity with four tracks and four platforms to separate Nexus and Metro from mainline services (the station is served by the Metro along with Northern and Grand Central rail services).
The exterior of the new southern entrance.
The spacious interior. (Both Photographs by Trevor Hall, December 2023)