The second stage of building Haverfordwest’s controversial near-£19m transport interchange has been backed, with senior councillors hearing it could cost the council more to not support it.
The transport interchange, which includes an integrated bus station and construction of a new multi-storey car park, is part of a wider series of regeneration projects in the county town.
The total cost of the scheme in the approved budget is £18.881m, £1.987m from Pembrokeshire County Council; the remainder, £16.894m, from an already-awarded Welsh Government grant.
To date, £3.425m has been spent on advanced works, including the demolition of the old multi-storey car park and a temporary bus station.
Members of Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet, meeting on April 22, were recommended to approve the award of the Stage 2 construction contract for the Haverfordwest Transport Interchange.
The report for members listed two simple options for Cabinet, to authorise the award of a contract, recommended, or to not.
For the latter it warned: “It is envisaged Welsh Government will withdraw the funding awarded and the council would need to repay grants received to date; £10.322m has been received to date of which £3.376m has been offset against expenditure.”
It added: “Cost to cease this project could cost PCC more in terms of grant repayment and any capital work required to make good. PCC match contribution for the project is forecast as £1.987m of the £18.881m.”
Planning permission for the interchange was granted in 2022, with a temporary bus station constructed that year and the old multi-storey building demolished in 2023.
That year, members of the county council’s Cabinet agreed a temporary car park will be sited on the demolished remains of the old multi-storey car park until the Haverfordwest Public Transport Interchange – delayed as no compliant tender had been found at the time – is built.
Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Leader Cllr Paul Miller said: “The interchange is an important part of the regeneration of Haverfordwest, it will not regenerate Haverfordwest on its own, it is part of a wider process. The alternative to us being engaged is we simply allow it to decline and fail.”
He said the interchange was about “making it easier to visit Haverfordwest,” making parking provision “really straightforward, making it easy and convenient as possible”.
Cllr Miller said not progressing with the scheme would risk the grants already obtained, meaning the council could potentially foot the bill for costs to date, at a greater level than progressing.
He said the cost options were a near-£2m subsidised council involvement for the whole scheme or the £3m-plus spent to date if the scheme was ended, which would leave the car park as it is now.
“It’s pretty reasonable that if they give us the money and we don’t build a transport interchange they’ll be looking for that money back.”
He said previous figures from parking revenue – back in 2019 – amounted to £100,000 a year; and could be expected to at least double on a “like-for-like” basis following the increase in parking charges.
Members, after a private and confidential session over the actual contract details, agreed to proceed with the scheme, awarding the contract to Kier Construction Western and Wales.
Transport hub timeline
The development of the Public Transport Interchange to create a much improved multi-storey car park and bus station for Haverfordwest took a major step forward back in March 2022, when the County Council’s planning committee backed a recommendation to approve the development, subject to the agreement of some outstanding planning matters.
The Local Authority announced that the project would involve the demolition of the existing ‘under-utilised and unwelcoming’ multi-storey car park to create a much improved facility and surrounding environment, including upgraded passenger facilities, public toilets and a Changing Places facility.
The interchange would include the provision of active travel facilities and improved access and connectivity to Haverfordwest rail station in terms of walking, cycling and bus services.
It was proposed that the new multi-storey car park will have circa 320 spaces and be much easier to use and manoeuvre around for drivers.
Green credentials are also important with electric vehicle charging points included – with further vehicle charging expansion built-in and future-proofed.
Solar panels are planned for the new car park roof, which will be a ‘green roof’ with vegetation to mitigate surface water run off.
Clr. Paul Miller, Cabinet Member for Economy, Tourism, Leisure and Culture and Cllr Phil Baker, PCC’s Cabinet Member for Infrastructure at the time, welcomed the developments, stating: “This is a significant opportunity to provide a modern, sensitively designed facility, in a gateway location to the county town of Haverfordwest and link with the other major regeneration developments underway, such as Western Quayside and at Haverfordwest Castle.
“We want to make it as easy and welcoming as possible for people to walk and cycle or use the sustainable transport services such as taking the bus or train, whilst still retaining the option to drive into Haverfordwest and explore and enjoy the county town.”
The bus station was moved to what was the Bridgend Square car park to ensure that bus services continued throughout the demolition and rebuild phase; with it agreed that a temporary car park would be sited on the demolished remains of the old multi-storey.
In late January 2023, councillors heard a doubling of the costs of the transport project to nearly £18m – with figures now quoted as nearer £20m – was not fully communicated with the public.
The November decision to go into private session – following a call from Cllr Rhys Sinnett rather than Deputy Leader Cllr Paul Miller, who was unable to attend the meeting – came under social media scrutiny.
In March, a call to put the contentious project on hold until a business partner was found for the nearby Riverside shopping centre was turned down.
By July 2023 the long-running saga of the interchange was back before Cabinet, with members hearing that no compliant tender had been received, delaying the replacement bus station and multi-storey car park project works.
In October, a call to cut the scheme to a single storey, using awarded funding elsewhere in the county, was refused, after Cllr Aled Thomas had asked for an amendment of the business case “to just a ground-level car park and associated modern bus station”.
He suggested that the funds could be used for other transport capital projects that are desperately needed in Pembrokeshire, such as enhancing the rail network at both Milford and Pembroke Dock stations, as well as the provision of newer, greener buses which would reduce maintenance cost pressures in the revenue budget”.
Cllr Thomas cited recent cost reductions in the on-going ‘levelling-up’ works in the town, adding: “Yet we are considering eye-watering amounts on this car park”.
Cllr Miller responded saying an expected council outlay of £1.9m was expected to generate an annual income of £150,000, a return on investment he said many private investors would be pleased to receive.