We passed this view while walking between the railway station and bus station in Rotherham, and it was interesting to see the latest changes being made on Forge Island.
It is an artificial island, with a short section of canal created to avoid an unnavigable section of the River Don. A weir keeps the river level high and the canal full of water. Forge Island is the area between the river and canal.
Forge Island has had various uses in my lifetime. During my childhood it was the location for a steel works, and there was a very loud large drop hammer to shape the steel.
Later it became the site of a Tesco supermarket. When Tesco moved to a larger site, Forge Island was cleared for use as a temporary car park. After that it became a bus station while the main bus station was repaired following a serious fire on a bus parked in there.
Now it is being transformed again. Flod defences are being improved, and the area is to become a centre for recreational activity, with a cinema, a Travelodge hotel, and six restaurants, as well as public open spaces.
Quite a series of changes in a relatively short time.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
The list of different uses of Forge Island were those that I could remember, and it seems my memory failed me a little. Before the area was home to a Tesco spermarket, it was a Hillards supermarket, and after its temporary use as a bus station it became a Covid-19 testing centre. I find it quite surprising the variety of uses that this area has had, just in my lifetime.
Ian
October 8th, 2023
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Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
The list of different uses of Forge Island were those that I could remember, and it seems my memory failed me a little. Before the area was home to a Tesco spermarket, it was a Hillards supermarket, and after its temporary use as a bus station it became a Covid-19 testing centre. I find it quite surprising the variety of uses that this area has had, just in my lifetime.
Ian