Nothing is ever perfect. Not even the brand new Delft Station. Since its official opening in March, the Delft Station has seen a footfall of thousands. Quite a few of those commuters had some teething problems to point out.
It must be noted, that most people we interviewed started by saying that they really like the new station, warts and all. Master’s student Mileha Soneji takes the train out of Delft almost thrice a week. Usually running to catch a train, she takes the small entrance straight into the platform via the bike parking area. “It’s a direct shortcut, but there’s no machine to top up your card there. If you realise while checking in that your balance is low, then you have to go out and all the way inside to recharge.”
Interestingly, most commuters may not yet have realised that there is a short cut directly onto and out of the platforms. A lack of signage is another complaint we encountered.
The other, most quoted one, involves bike parking. “Even when I show up early in the morning the bike parking is full. It’s annoying,” said PhD candidate Natalie Carr. Other interviewees concurred, adding that sometimes guards turns people away on account of lack of space even though they can see people from inside taking their bikes out of parking to leave.
The design, according to Carr, is not efficient when it comes to the flow of traffic. “Since there is a slow trickle of people into the station the escalators are never able to switch to an upwards direction. When a train arrives and there is a mass exodus of people they are all forced on to the stairs, creating a huge crowd at the bottom of the stairs.”
Like the Rotterdam Station, this station also seems to setting itself up as a meeting point with cafes and ample seating area. However, bad cell reception and open WiFi networks that never seem to work go against that aim. “Another problem with using the station for quick meetings arises when you park your bike in the underground parking. There’s no way to enter the station without checking in with your travel card. Unless of course you’re willing to walk all the way around, which defeats the aim of a time-saving venue,” said Molly Quell, the international editor of Delta.
Sakshi Badola, who lives closer to Tanthof, often took the tram to the old station or walked to the rear entrance. Now, the distance from the tram stop and the new station has increased, making it tough to plan a tight schedule. “As for walking, they’ve now broken the tunnel so I have to take a longer detour.” That, hopefully, is a temporary situation. At least according to the Facebook page Spoorzone Delft, where the same complaint and other scathing discussions are being held. So if you have any more problems to point out, you know where to go.
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