Plans could see Sea Terminal used as a temporary bus interchange

DoI requests funds for 'short term solution'

The Department of Infrastructure is to request funding to use the Sea Terminal as a temporary bus station.

The site is said to be unsuitable in its current format, but could be useable in the short term if alterations are made to the front of the building.

Another option is to improve the Lord Street bus stops.

In the long term, Infrastructure Minister Tim Crookall says his department will ensure the Lord Street developer honours the commitment to build facilities for bus passengers in line with the conditions of the sale of the site.

His comments come as part of a Tynwald Question for Written answer from Douglas East MHK Joney Faragher, who asked what assessment has been undertaken of the suitability of the Sea Terminal as a temporary bus facility.

In his response, Minister Crookall says: "Department of Infrastructure Officers considered if the Sea Terminal could be used as a temporary bus interchange. The outcome of this consideration was that the current layout of the Sea Terminal Building would require alterations to be able to achieve this which are currently unbudgeted."

"This was tested by buses (both single and double deck) accessing the front car park to ensure that passengers would be able to board and alight the buses safely and to modern accessibility standards and to see if the buses could manoeuvre safely on a routine basis around the curved road, without damaging the building canopy. 

"Vehicles were unable to be positioned safely in the building’s current format, being unable to safely deploy onto a level footpath, allow safe driver visibility or to remove contact risk with the building."

In July 2023, Tynwald agreed that the re-establishing of bus facilities in Douglas was a 'priority'. The DOI was told to deliver a detailed plan by the end of the year. 

On 3 January, Minister Crookall issued a letter to Tynwald members explaining what his department had done since that time. The letter was promptly criticised by Ms Faragher who said the letter was 'wholly unacceptable'.