Overnight road closures coming soon for final phase of Ormskirk improvements

This work will be carried out overnight to minimise disruption due to the road closures needed, while activity continues during the daytime to finish the improvements to these public areas.

This phase of work will bring to near completion the £3.4m scheme to upgrade Ormskirk town centre focused on the area around St Helens Road, Moor Street and the bus station, which is being carried out in partnership by Lancashire County Council, West Lancashire Borough Council and Historic England.

Its aim is to support the local economy by making the area more attractive for everyone who lives, visits, shops and works in Ormskirk, as well as encouraging sustainable travel by improving public transport, walking and cycling facilities.

The overnight resurfacing is due to start on the evening of Monday 12 June, with the road closures in place from 9pm to 6am on weekdays until Friday 23 June. The closures will only affect vehicles, with pedestrian access being kept open at all times.

Moor Street will be closed between its junctions with St Helens Road and Stanley Street/Wigan Road and Knowsley Road, and St Helens Road will be closed between its junctions with Park Road and Moor Street.

Signed diversions will be in place for southbound traffic via Knowsley Road and St Helens Road, with northbound traffic being diverted via Park Road, Church Street, Derby Street West, Derby Street and Stanley Street.

4-way temporary traffic lights will be in place at the St Helens Road/Knowsley Road/Small Lane junction. In combination with some extra parking restrictions in this area, this traffic management will allow large vehicles, including buses, to use this junction on the diversion route safely.

Signed diversions will be in place for southbound traffic via Knowsley Road and St Helens Road, with northbound traffic being diverted via Park Road, Church Street, Derby Street West, Derby Street and Stanley Street.

No buses will operate via Ormskirk bus station during the times the closures are in place, with people instead being asked to wait for their bus at temporary bus stops on Knowsley Road which will be clearly publicised from the bus station.

County Councillor Rupert Swarbrick, Lancashire County Council cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "I'm very grateful for everyone's patience while we've been carrying out these improvements. There have been some construction difficulties on this project, but we're now on the final stretch and can start looking forward to everything being finished very soon.

"The elements of this scheme which have already been completed, particularly the new bus station and upgraded pavements, look really good, and I'm sure will serve Ormskirk well for many years. This is a rare opportunity to make such a big investment in Ormskirk's transport infrastructure and public areas - we're nearly there, and the result will be worth it for the future prosperity of the town.

"We're trying to minimise disruption as far as possible by carrying out this final stage of work to resurface parts of Moor Street and St Helens Road overnight, which means we can keep traffic flowing normally during the day. It will mean some inconvenience to people's journeys in this area during the evenings, however this way of working will keep the overall level of disruption to a minimum."

Following the resurfacing, some minor improvements are due to be made to the pay and display car park on Moor Street which has been closed throughout this phase of the project in order to house the site compound.  The car park is expected to reopen, and the project be fully completed around the end of June.