Rochdale town centre changing fast

The transformation of Rochdale town centre continues apace with scaffolding going up around the old black box in the past week.

It will take around eight weeks to cover the entire building, which will finally be consigned to history by the end of October this year.

Rubble now covers much of the site of the old bus station and car park, which will be gone by the end of this month.

Most of the bridgelinks have now disappeared with only the section between the back of M&S and the bottom of Yorkshire Street remaining. This will be removed at the beginning of May.

Once the demolition is complete, a 200 capacity car park will be constructed on the site of the old bus station, with landscaped walkways being laid where the black box once stood. Longer term, a shopping and leisure facility will be constructed on the cleared site.

Shoppers can continue to access the Wheatsheaf from Baillie Street or Yorkshire Street until the new entrance opens at the end of November.

Visitors can use the town centre shuttle bus to get around the shops more easily during the demolition. The bus leaves stand c in the bus station every 20 minutes between 8.05am and 5.05pm.

Mark Widdup, Director of Economy and Environment at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “It’s an exciting time for the town centre with the skyline changing very quickly. By the end of the year we’ll be looking at a totally different town centre which will be the perfect location for the new restaurants and shops we plan to bring on board in the coming months.”