New images are to go on display showing how Lowestoft’s historic railway station could look with a reinstated concourse roof, enabling better facilities for rail passengers and creating a unique tourist attraction for the town.

The Lowestoft Central Project and Wherry Lines Community Rail Partnership (CRP) commissioned leading railway architects to produce the designs which draw upon the station’s Victorian heritage and similar railway structures in the region. The designs show a double apex roof over the main station concourse with additional canopies situated over the station’s three platforms.

The concept proposal, produced by Fain Redfern in association with Oxford Architects, provides for a self-supporting structure that has minimum impact on the historic original buildings.

The proposed roof and canopy images will be on public display at Lowestoft Station at the end of January.

Chris Mitchell, chair of the Wherry Lines CRP, said: “We are at the beginning of a very long journey in our efforts to reinstate a roof at Lowestoft Station. Our plan is to create a self-supporting structure that fully compliments the remaining Victorian architecture, provides much needed shelter for rail passengers and has a dual purpose in making the station an attraction in itself, able to host a variety of events and activities all year round.”

Martin Halliday, development officer for the Wherry Lines CRP, said: “Over the past ten years we have worked hard to rejuvenate much of the station, putting it at the very heart of the community it serves.

“Should we be able to take our plans for the roof further, we believe it will not only provide much needed cover for passengers, it will also allow us to further extend our community work and, by making the station a tourist attraction in its own right, we will be able to host a variety of events attracting visitors to the town, supporting both the local economy and driving regeneration in the area.”

Find out more about the history of the station, and the research and design process for the roof upgrades, here.

Keep up to date with future news, projects and events from Wherry Lines CRP via their website.