Burnley road closure extended to prevent future disruption
Yorkshire Street in Burnley is due to stay closed for a further 4 weeks until Friday 11 August to allow good progress to continue with the Town2Turf regeneration scheme, and reduce overall disruption by preventing the need for the road to be closed again in future.
The road in the centre of Burnley has been closed since Monday 5 June for essential maintenance to the aqueduct, known locally as 'the culvert' which carries the Leeds and Liverpool canal over Yorkshire Street.
This work, focused on repainting the bridge to prolong its life by preventing corrosion, is due to be completed on schedule around the end of this week.
Work began nearby this week to demolish the Centenary Way roundabout which is due to be replaced with a traffic light-controlled junction with wider pavements and improved pedestrian crossings as part of the Town2Turf scheme to improve links between Burnley town centre and Turf Moor, the home of Burnley FC.
The extended closure of Yorkshire Street to vehicles until around Friday 11 August will allow work to widen the pavements to progress under and either side of the aqueduct, linking the improvements to paving currently underway on Harry Potts Way to the Centenary Way junction. It will also allow for some further work to clean and carry out minor maintenance to the masonry walls of the aqueduct to make the area more welcoming.
The work involves widening the pavements by establishing a new kerbline to provide more room for pedestrians, and narrow the width of the road for vehicles, as well as replacing the central traffic island on Yorkshire Street, which can only be done safely with the road closed to traffic. Work will also take place at the same time to install new bus laybys, improve drainage under the aqueduct, and carry out some specialist cleaning and render repairs to masonry elements of the aqueduct.
County Councillor Rupert Swarbrick, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "With Yorkshire Street already closed for the maintenance to the aqueduct, and the start of the lighter traffic we can expect during school holidays, we've decided to extend the closure for some of the work needed as part of the Town2Turf scheme.
"Town2Turf is not due to be completed until summer next year, and this work could have been programmed at another time, however it will reduce the overall level of disruption if we keep the current closure in place rather than arrange another one in the future, which would also be more difficult to manage once the football season starts.
"The Town2Turf scheme will make a huge difference to this part of the town, and some level of disruption is unavoidable during a scheme on this scale. I'm grateful for people's patience while we make these significant improvements and for their understanding of the reason for extending the road closure, to avoid further disruption over the coming months."
The Town2Turf scheme is being funded through Levelling Up grant money and other funding, and undertaken in partnership between Burnley Council, Lancashire County Council and Burnley Football Club.
It forms part of wider plans to create a 'regeneration corridor' from one side of the town centre to the other, from the Weavers’ Triangle through to Turf Moor.
The scheme includes the roundabout at the junction of Yorkshire Street and Church Street being replaced by a traffic light junction with pedestrian crossings, the subway under Centenary Way being closed and the area landscaped, changes to the road system around the bus station, new pedestrian crossings, and improved paving, seating, and lighting.
The diversion for vehicles which will remain in place while Yorkshire Street is closed is via Church Street, Colne Road, Eastern Avenue and Belvedere Road, and vice versa.