Shrewsbury improvement works are under way
Improvement works are well underway in an area of Shrewsbury, but motorists are being warned about an upcoming road closure.
The work – part of the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package (SITP) – has started along both Barker Street and St Austin’s Street, which is known locally as ‘The Tannery’.
This work involves the removal of existing pre-cast concrete kerbs and tarmac footways and replacing them with granite kerbs and Yorkstone paving, which will tie in with areas previously refurbished through the town centre.
Pavements to the frontage of the medical centre have been widened and the carriageway realigned to slow traffic down on this junction.
Steve Charmley, Shropshire Council;s Deputy Leader and Cabinet member for highways, said:
“We are delighted to be carrying out this work which has been made possible by securing developer contributions and a successful bid to the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership.
“Work will also be undertaken to resurface and replace the road markings along Barker Street to the signal junction at Hills Lane and through in to St Austin’s Street to Claremont Bank.
“This is part of a large programme of works which have been undertaken to enhance the public realm in Shrewsbury town centre and is part of a £12million, externally funded improvement project for the town to improve the roads, footpaths, street furniture and cycle infrastructure.
“There will be some disruption and we thank people for their understanding while all this important work is carried out.
“For a few days disruption they will see a further significant improvement to the town once it is complete.”
Discussions are also being held to identify areas of the new paving which may benefit from additional benches / cycle racks to further enhance the area, and make it a more user friendly public space.
The completion of the surfacing will take place from 16 – 20 August, under day works, apart from one night of 19 August 2021 to lay the final surface layer course.
There will be a one way closure on Barker Street and Bridge Street so traffic will still flow through town but will not be able to travel from the traffic lights at the bottom up into town, and there will be a local diversion route via Roushill, Mardol and Claremont Street.
The traffic will be managed and marshals will be available when we work on St Austin’s Street to enable access into the GP surgery and the car park. The public car park traffic will be managed on site again with the help of marshals and access to the car parks will be via Hills Lane.
There have been many obstacles to overcome over the last 18 months such as the devastating flooding event back in 2020, and the coronavirus pandemic that saw the works necessarily suspended earlier in the year.
Despite this, and with the ongoing support of businesses residents and visitors, we have been able to press ahead, incorporate modifications to the Mardol/Claremont Street junction in to the project, and deliver transformational improvements to the town centre.
The main works achieved substantial completion in April 2021, the Tannery paving works plus resurfacing are due to be complete by the end of August 2021.
