Pedestrian access widened outside Glasgow Central following March fire

A large cordon has been in place since the blaze in early March.

More pedestrian areas around Glasgow Central Station have reopened to the public following the devastating fire on Union Street in March.

Glasgow City Council said on Thursday pedestrians can once again walk on the north pavement along the full length of Gordon Street, avoiding the previous detours along Drury Street or Renfield Lane.

Controlled access was given earlier in the week to affected food businesses, allowing them to remove spoiled food and clean premises ahead of reopening.

Angus Millar, the council’s convener for city centre recovery, said the decision to reopen the pavement is another milestone in the continuing recovery of the area.

“It’s absolutely necessary for the vitality of the city centre that people can see that its open for business, and the reopening of these key pedestrian routes following the Union Street fire helps that,” he said.

“Given the proximity to Central Station, these are among the busiest pavements in the country and this will be welcomed by those forced to take detours to and from the station.

“The recovery of Union Street is a major priority for the city, and work is already under way to chart a way forward for the future of the street and the wider Central Station area.

“That’s going to be a long process, but Glaswegians will be glad to see this major milestone towards recovery.”

The fire began in a vape shop neighbouring Glasgow Central on Union Street on Sunday March 8 and spread through the building and around the corner.

Only the facade of Forsyth House, the B-listed Victorian building at the junction with Gordon Street, was left standing and it has since been demolished.

Glasgow Central was closed for several days following the blaze before the main part of the building partially reopened on March 18, with all platforms reopening on March 25.

More than 70 businesses lost their premises in the blaze while dozens of others were unable to open as they were within the safety cordon put in place after the incident.

Glasgow City Council opened a multimillion-pound fund to support businesses affected by the fire in late March, and the council said on Thursday it is continuing to work with affected residents and firms as the recovery progresses in the coming weeks and months.

The council also said “very good progress” has been made on the stabilisation of the gable wall on the western side of the fire-affected site, and work to fill voids on the wall will begin shortly.

Mr Millar added: “I’d like to thank the affected businesses for their patience, and hope that the reopening of the pedestrian areas assists businesses in returning to normal as quickly as possible.”