Rail museum's new entrance replaces 400m detour

4 hours ago

Jack Hadaway-WellerNational Railway Museum

Sarah Price, from the National Railway Museum, says they have been developing the new entrance over the last eight months

BBC/Jack Hadaway-Weller A woman with blonde hair and square glasses stands in front of a green gate and black sign for the National Railway Museum.

She is wearing a grey jumper and a black jacket.

Behind her is a brick building. — Sarah Price, from the National Railway Museum, says they have been developing the new entrance over the last eight months

The National Railway Museum (NRM) has opened a new temporary entrance replacing a 400m detour to access the attraction.

The museum in York opened the entrance on Hudson Boulevard, a pedestrian and cycle route near its Station Hall building.

It provides a direct route through South Yard and will remain in place until the museum's new permanent entrance opens at Central Hall, which is currently undergoing development.

"While that building work is taking place we've had to send people on a bit of a diversion around our site to get into the museum," said Sarah Price, head of public programme at NRM.

"The temporary entrance is going to make it much easier."

Previously, visitors had to navigate the long detour past Station Hall to use the museum's sole entrance on Leeman Road.

"We're really conscious that for some of our visitors its quite a long walk for them," said Price.

"Even on a rainy day, that walk can feel a lot longer than it actually is.

What this entrance means is that we're cutting all that out and making it really, really easy."

The NRM's Great Hall can still be accessed through the Leeman Road entrance

BBC/Jack Hadaway-Weller A large modern museum building stands beside a wide, quiet road under a bright blue sky with scattered white clouds.

The entrance, marked “Railway Museum,” features a dark contemporary facade with a few visitors near the doorway. — The NRM's Great Hall can still be accessed through the Leeman Road entrance

Visitors will now be able to access the museum through its entrance on Leeman Road or the temporary entrance from Hudson Boulevard.

The NRM opened in York in 1975 and was the first national museum outside London.

Once the museum's Central Hall development opens in 2028, it will become the museum's permanent main entrance and will provide level access for visitors for the first time in the NRM's history.

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