Gosport: Plan to replace bus station with People's Park

The two-storey building, which occupies a prime spot beside Portsmouth Harbour, has often been described as ugly and outdated.

Campaigners have repeatedly urged Gosport Borough Council to make better use of the "gateway" site.

The bus station is sandwiched between Harbour Tower flats and a passenger ferry terminal serving the boats that operate between Gosport and Portsmouth.

Plans to demolish Gosport Bus Station and transform the site have been unveiled by the borough council (Image: Newsquest)

Now the council has applied for planning permission to demolish the L-shaped complex and redevelop the area.

If the multi-million-pound scheme is given the go-ahead, Gosport will gain a new facility called People's Park, which will boast food and drink outlets and a new bus station further back from the waterfront.

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A demolition statement that accompanies the application says: "The existing building provides ten stands for First Hampshire and Dorset bus services that connect Gosport to Fareham and Portsmouth. The first floor has partly been used as office space, with the rest being left vacant.

"Generally viewed negatively by local residents, the design of the building is quite dated and is in great need of modernisation."

Gosport Borough Council has applied for planning permission to bulldoze the town's bus station and transform the site (Image: Newsquest)

Demolition work is due to start in November and is expected to take about three months.

"This is to create space for the People's Park development, which proposes a new bandstand area, office space, and waterfront food and drink concessions."

The statement says the scheme aims to turn the "gateway entrance" to Gosport into a more multi-functional, community-oriented area and thus provide a greater sense of arrival for ferry passengers.

"The demolition will provide Gosport Borough Council with space to greatly improve the waterside area through the development of People's Park, which in turn will give residents and visitors a greater public space that capitalises on a prominent waterfront location."

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The proposed new bus station will replace a taxi rank that has stood disused since the cabbies were moved to a new site.

They used to operate from a rank near the Falklands Gardens but are now based beside the junction of South Street and The Esplanade. The site was formerly a public car park.

The Gosport Borough Local Plan 2011-2029, adopted in 2015, highlights the need to improve waterfront areas.

It says: "A key element of the redevelopment of the waterfront will include a new ferry/bus interchange.

"Proposals coming forward for the site should facilitate the removal of the existing unattractive buildings and incorporate a well-designed interchange appropriate for this important gateway to the town."