Significant disruption is expected in the area around Shrewsbury railway station starting Monday, May 12th, as two major projects – the construction of new cycleways and the installation of high voltage cabling by National Grid – get underway.
The works are part of ongoing improvements to the station area and are scheduled to impact traffic and access on key routes including Castle Foregate, Castle Gates, Castle Street, and Meadow Place over the coming weeks.
Cycleway Construction Begins
The next phase of Shropshire Council’s work to enhance the station area involves the construction of new cycleways. This phase begins on Castle Foregate, extending from New Park Road through to Windsor Place on Castle Gates.
Initial work at New Park Road will include a widened footway and a new controlled crossing linking to the old canal path. The cycleway will then proceed southbound on Castle Foregate on the eastern footway, which will be widened to create a shared facility for pedestrians and cyclists.
A revised routing for the cycleway on Castle Foregate between Cross Street and New Park Road has been adopted to maintain on-street parking in this section, providing a shared facility off the main road.
Further along Castle Foregate, ahead of the Howard Street/Cross Street junction and in front of the railway station, the cycleway will move onto the road. The existing near-side lane in front of the station will be converted into a two-way segregated cycle way.
Towards the conclusion of the station gyratory improvements, this two-way segregated cycle way will be extended along Castle Gates and Castle Street to Windsor Place. This section will involve converting the existing bus lane for use by cyclists, with vehicular traffic utilising the right-hand lane into Castle Street. Details on the precise timeframe for this phase will be confirmed once available from the contractor.
McPhillips has been appointed as the contractor for the cycleway works. They have stated that access to premises will be maintained at all times, with a temporary walkway provided on the eastern side of Castle Foregate between New Park Road and Howard Street junction during footway works.
Temporary suspension of parking bays on the western side of Castle Foregate, between the Cross Street junction and New Park Road, will be necessary from May 19th to ensure safe passage for vehicles, pedestrians, and cyclists. McPhillips will issue letters to affected properties detailing the work and timeframes and will endeavour to free up parking as work progresses.
Drawings of the cycle routes, contractor letters, and traffic management layouts are available on the Shropshire Council website.
National Grid Cable Installation
Running concurrently with some of the cycleway work, National Grid will be undertaking a major cable reinforcement scheme. This involves installing new high voltage cabling between their substation at Preston Street and the substation located under The Darwin Centre on Raven Meadows.
Shropshire Council has agreed to this work being carried out in advance of their wider resurfacing program for Castle Foregate and Castle Gates to prevent future disruption and ensure completion before the final phase of the Station Quarter enhancement scheme.
The National Grid work is scheduled from May 12th to June 6th, 2025.
Traffic management for the National Grid work will include:
– A lane closure on Castle Foregate between May 12th and June 6th.
– Temporary traffic lights on Castle Foregate at the junction with Howard Street and Cross Street from May 12th to May 22nd (7am to 7pm daily).
– A further set of temporary traffic lights on Castle Foregate at the junction with Smithfield Road from May 27th to May 30th. This phase will be undertaken overnight between 7pm and 7am to minimise disruption, with permanent signals reactivated each morning.
– A road closure on Meadow Place from June 2nd to June 6th for the final phase. A signed diversion will be in place, though access to businesses and residential properties will be maintained.
National Grid will provide a traffic management operative on site daily from 7am to 7pm to manually control the temporary traffic lights while they are in operation.
Advance warning signs have been erected two weeks prior to the commencement of the scheme, and residents and affected businesses will be notified of the works.
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