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Busiest August in four years for Southend Pier

6:00am Monday 14th September 2009 in Southend

MORE than 56,000 people visited Southend Pier last month, making it the busiest August since the 2005 fire.

The world-famous landmark will take another step forward on Wednesday, with the official reopening of the pierhead station, which was destroyed in the blaze.

A temporary station has been in use since then, and councillor responsible for tourism, John Lamb, said: “To see the station fully restored and back in action is truly a moment to celebrate.

“Our contractor, BAM Nuttall, has replaced the tracks, the platform, the station office and the canopy, which will allow passengers to again travel the length of the pier.

“The new station is also energy efficient, with solar panels forming the platform canopy.”

Mr Lamb said other work was also going on at the pier including the replacement of the 1950s windbreaks, replacement of windows in the Pier Museum as well as repainting, which will continue during the winter.

He said: “It is especially heartening to know we have just had the busiest August since 2005, which shows how much our pier is an enduring and ever-popular destination for visitors.”

The council has invested £2.4million in repairing the South station and £830,000 on other improvement works.

Works manager for BAM Nuttall, Adrian Macdonald, said: “Passers-by from all walks of life stop and ask the team about the works. The close relationship we have built up with the community has been very positive, and we have been welcomed with open arms.”

The council recently held a competition for architects to put forward their designs for the pier. The winning entry is due to be announced on Tuesday.

Comments(2)

SARFENDMAN says...
9:09am Mon 14 Sep 09

The new station looks nice but gives as much coverage as Jordon's skimpy bikini when the weather is bad. It's design is great when rain falls vertically, which out in The Estuary is rare. If wind and rain combined it's ineffective as a shelter. Seems a shame simple ideas of windbreaks on the pierhead incorporating some deckchairs would have been nice incorporated this summer. Still need some basic regular seaside entertainment throughout the summer and better choices on refreshments. A bandstand would be nice with an organist for the oldies. If you add in those factors what would the numbers be then? Still the pier is a survivor and thankfully defies the odds and bucks the trend as numbers indicate. Come on Mr Lamb and Co. Yes you can feel pleased but still could do a whole lot more and sooner rather than later.

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evilc says...
9:15pm Mon 14 Sep 09

That included my family But I found it a bit expensive travelling on the train for a family.

The price was ok IF there was more at the end but to be honest there was nothing there except the lifeboat station and even there, there was no real lifeboat like there used to be.

The cafe at the end was very small and did not have a massive selection plus drinking from polystyrene cups is not really my 'cup of tea' but the couple running it were friendly.

Finally the new at the end station gives NO cover from the wind or rain which can be a real problem if the weather takes a turn for the worse and you have a young family trying to shelter especially as the trains only run every 30 mins.

However hopefully one day in the next 100 years it might improve.

The best site was seeing how much Phillip Miller has invested in Adventure land sited around the pier.

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