I went to visit Pimpama today. My overall thoughts are that the facilities at the station are quite nice, but it is disappointing that it is surrounded by low-density housing, a suburban shopping centre, and a sea of carparks. There’s definitely better use for the land surrounding the station.
The Station
The station is nice and modern. I know some people take issue with the architecture, but personally I don’t mind it. It’s definitely on the more utilitarian side of things, but I don’t think it looks terrible or anything.
My biggest complaint is the seating to be honest. I’m not sure how many of you have had the displeasure of experiencing the new style of chairs, but the best way to describe it is ‘close but not cigar’. The recline angle is ever so slightly too little, making for a rather uncomfortable experience.
Bus Stops
There’s only two bus stops for the station which may present an issue if the 5 routes servicing the station ever see frequency increases. Also, neither of the bus stops have PIDs visible from the seating.
There is a singular PID for the bus routes at the entrance to the station, however you wouldn’t naturally see it leaving the station. It’s definitely better than nothing, but the placement seems ill-thought through.
Wayfinding
Network Maps
Utilities
Bathrooms
Assistant Animal Relief Zone
This is something that I haven’t seen before to be completely honest. It’s a small patch of grass with a bubbler (including a water bowl for dogs) and a poo bag dispenser. Seems like a good thing to include for members of the community with assistant animals.
The bubbler is definitely welcome in our climate, however I’m disappointed that this is the only bubbler at the station. I’d prefer if there were some on the platform too.
Bicycle Storage
It’s good to see that there’s a bicycle storage facility at the station, although I’m disappointed that there aren’t clear instructions on how to access it or what is required to access it. I could see this turning a lot of people off of using it.
Commemorative Signage
Urban Landscape
Lots of carparks is how I’d put it. All the crossings are raised zebra crossing which is positive and there is an easy connection to the shopping centre (even if it is a relatively unpleasant walk).
Taxi Zone/Kiss and Ride
Accessible Parking
One positive part of the surrounding car park is the high-quality disabled parking. There’s plenty of space surrounding each park, and the pavement goes down to street level to make it even easier.
Footpaths
While not the end of the world, there is no pedestrian entrance on the corner of Old Pacific Highway and Mebbin Street. This means that it is a slightly more annoying walk to the station for residents nearby than it could otherwise be.
There was also a section of the footpath just outside the station precinct which wasn’t patched up correctly, causing a tripping hazard. Hopefully it gets fixed promptly.
A little chuckle…
Something I found to be quite amusing is that the station is currently running off of diesel generators. It seems Energex is yet to connect the station to the power network since their transformer is still boarded up.
