PLANS to create a bus interchange and park-and-ride facility on derelict land next to Penistone's railway station are at 'an advanced stage'.
Developer Steven Green, managing director of Yorkshire Land Ltd, bought the Lairds Way site for more than £500,000 in 2007 and has held numerous discussions about the project with Barnsley Council and South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive.
He also envisages building a tourist information centre on the site, along with toilets, a cafe and, possibly, office space, and said Penistone desperately needs the facilities.
"If the council wanted to get behind it I can see no reason why this time next year these works can't be commencing," he said."This would become a well-used public asset and one of which Penistone could be immensely proud of."
Penistone Town Councillor Andrew Millner is keen to seen the interchange created and said the facility was something the public asked for in Penistone's community-led plan.
"I think the current bus service and the bus stop we've got in the centre of Penistone on Market Place is ineffective and dangerous and leads to congestion," he said.
"An interchange will lead to an improvement in the provision of bus services for the town, which we're desperate for."
