Creating the UK’s first carbon-neutral bus station for a greener city future
This major city centre redevelopment transforms the ageing 1980s St Margaret’s Bus Station into a highly sustainable, 21stcentury transport hub – the first carbon neutral bus station in the UK. The project forms a key part of the St Margaret’s Gateway and benefits from £10.5 million in government investment via the Getting Building Fund, secured through the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP).
Responding to Leicester’s ambition to create a modern, low-carbon transport interchange, the scheme delivers a confident architectural statement while remaining sensitive to the historic setting at the heart of the city. Sustainability is embedded throughout the design, incorporating LED lighting, 750 square metres of solar panels, electric bus charging points, and a glazed concourse to maximise natural daylight and minimise energy demand.
Location: Leicester city centre
Client: Arcadis LLP
Service: Planning
Sectors: Town centre
Team: Brian Mullin
A collaborative planning strategy
Marrons has worked with Arcadis LLP on behalf of Leicester City Council since December 2019, supporting the project from initial feasibility through to securing full planning consent. Our focus was on technical robustness, planning efficiency and seamless coordination across the multidisciplinary project team.
Our role included
- Early planning feasibility advice to shape a deliverable vision
- Full planning consultancy, including preparation and management of the complete planning application
- Securing associated demolition consent and a stopping-up order
- Facilitating timely sign‑off of all technical reports through proactive engagement with consultees
The planning application was submitted on a highly accelerated programme – coordinating inputs across heritage, flood risk, ecology, ground investigations, maintenance and operational logistics.
Key achievements
The team secured planning permission with no pre-commencement conditions, enabling immediate start on site and protecting the ambitious construction timeline. By frontloading technical work and maintaining continuous dialogue with stakeholders, approvals progressed efficiently and without delay
The planning strategy balanced competing policy priorities – high-quality design, public realm improvements, SuDS requirements and long-term operational viability – while maintaining cost efficiency. The result is a planning outcome that supported swift delivery of a complex infrastructure project with significant sustainability ambitions.
The result
Instructions were received in August 2020, with full planning permission granted by January 2021. This rapid turnaround demonstrates the depth of expertise and coordinated working practices across our team.
The new carbon-neutral bus station opened in 2022, delivering a distinctive and highly sustainable transport hub that supports Leicester’s wider environmental objectives and encourages increased public transport use. The project has also gained national recognition, winning the Future Cities Forum Winter 2022 Award for Infrastructure and Transport-Related Development.
Delivered through strong collaboration with Leicester City Council and a wide team of technical specialists, the scheme sets a benchmark for future transport-led regeneration in the city.
