Merrywalks bus hub in line for £100k revamp

The Merrywalks transport hub is due to be transformed as part of a new scheme by Gloucestershire County Council. 

The area used to be Stroud Bus Station before it was demolished in 2004. 

According to plans, new bus shelters will be installed with CCTV and new displays showing ‘real time passenger information’ along with new lighting, signage and street furniture.

It is hoped the area will eventually become more user-friendly, comfortable, safe and inviting.

The project has been awarded £98,000 by Stroud District Council through its Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding for 2024/25.

It comes as two benches were recently installed outside the bus stops in Merrywalks, following concerns about a lack of seating. 

Altogether more than £1.2M is set to be allocated in the district after SDC councillors recently approved spend allocations for next financial year.

Benches were recently been installed in Merrywalks near bus stops (Image: Newsquest)

Sub Rooms will also get £60k revamp 

Other projects which have also been supported by CIL funding include: 

• Standish multi-user path – Gloucestershire County Council: £400,000.
• New entrance/reception/office at Gastrells Community Primary School - Gloucestershire County Council: £228,000.
• Berkeley Town Improvement Plan (detailed design) – Berkeley Town Council: £200,000.
• Berkeley Community Hub – Berkeley Books: £170,000.
• Stroud Merrywalks Interchange Hub - Gloucestershire County Council: £98,000.
• Stroud Subscription Rooms’ new catering kitchen and toilets – Subscription Rooms Trust: £66,759.
• Sustainable drainage for water quality and habitat at Stratford Park – Stroud District Council: £45,852.

CIL funding is paid by the developers of new homes to help to provide for any additional demand that may be placed on local infrastructure by new housing growth.

This year’s CIL funding allocations follow £788,789 of investment already made by Stroud District Council in previous CIL funding rounds. 

“This funding is important because it means that developers contribute towards new community facilities and improvements to the district,” said council leader, Catherine Braun.

Deputy leader Natalie Bennett added: “We have considered funding bids very carefully, to ensure that we get the best result for communities across the district in the future.”

Project details:

• Standish multi-user path construction - part of the Gloucestershire Cycle Spine, has secured considerable matched investment from the Department for Transport, GCC and local development. An extra contribution of £57,347 will be made from SDC’s Walking and Cycling Budget.
• Gastrells School new entrance/reception & office area – relocation of first floor reception and staff offices to the ground floor, making the school more accessible for visitors and increasing first floor teaching space. Creates potential for an additional classroom.
• Berkeley Town Improvement Plan – Following CIL support last year, detailed designs can be taken forward for construction. Berkeley Town Council is looking for other funding sources for the capital delivery phases. An extra contribution of £16,440 will come from SDC’s Walking and Cycling budget.
• Berkeley Community Hub - Based around the town library, the project proposes the creation of a muti-functional space that can be used by a wider range of health and wellbeing organisations offering outreach services. It will be based on other successful ‘community hub models’ such as GL11.
• Stroud Merrywalks Interchange Hub – GCC-led project focusses on modernising facilities, and making the whole area much more user-friendly, comfortable, safe and inviting. Better shelters, CCTV, real-time passenger information, lighting, signage and street furniture.
• Stroud Subscription Rooms – New catering kitchen and toilets. Customer toilets are old and unable to keep up with modern demand, suffering from regular breakdowns and complaints. The current kitchen also cannot cope with increasing pressures and needs remodelling for greater catering capacity.
• Sustainable Drainage, Water quality & habitat improvement at Stratford Park Lake - led by SDC Officers, the project has matched funding support from SDC, GCC and the Wildlife Trust. A reed bed filtration system will treat polluted water from local road surfaces before entering Stratford Park Lake.

More details of all the projects, and CIL funding see here - tinyurl.com/mvwxb6fa