Is anybody really surprised by the news that a survey by Passenger Focus has named Birmingham’s New Street station worst for ‘overall satisfaction’?. It’s always had the feel of an airport departure lounge attached to an underground car park, and the current rebuilding does nothing to solve its fundamental problems.
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Reminds me of the horrible state of Penn Station in NYC after its original beauty was destroyed and replaced with something that — to use your words — resembles an underground parking garage crossed with an airport departure lounge. It’s amazing how ghastly it is, and it’s likely to remain that way indefinitely for a host of reasons.
Not experienced Penn Station in person, but I’m aware of it’s reputation.
The magnificent station Birmingham lost was Snow Hill. It was closed to all traffic in 1972 with the trains diverted to New Street, and demolished a few years later.
The vacant site was never redeveloped, and was used to a car park for a few years. Then rising rail traffic meant New Street couldn’t cope, and a new Snow Hill had to be built on the site of the old one. Sadly it’s a lot smaller and less impressive than the one demolished in the 1970s.