Closure of right turn on Water Street
Originally published 5th October 2006
From midday on Sunday, 8th October traffic will no longer be able to turn right out of Water Street on to the Strand as part of the City Centre Movement Strategy scheme.
The gap in the central reservation at the bottom of Water Street on The Strand will be closed up and motorists will no longer be able to turn right or drive straight ahead from Water Street, they will only be able to turn left.
The gap will be closed with temporary barriers to begin with and during the last days of the work on this phase, it will be permanently filled in, due for completion at the end of October 2006.
A new right turn is being opened up for motorists coming out of the Strand Queensway (Birkenhead) Tunnel exit at the same time.
The works are part of wider city improvements to roads to make our road network more efficient and adapt to the changing city centre with the City Centre Movement Strategy, CCMS, a programme of works by partners Liverpool City Council, Liverpool Vision and Merseytravel.
By stopping the right turn, motorists are encouraged to stop using the busy city centre roads as a through route and instead use more appropriate roads just outside the city centre, such as Leeds Street, Hunter Street and Byrom Street.
Hunter Street, Byrom Street and Tithebarn Street have already been upgraded as part of CCMS. Hunter and Byrom Streets are now more accessible for motorists and Tithebarn Street has been changed to meet the needs of motorists, pedestrians and public transport.
Motorists can also use Pall Mall, Vauxhall Road and Leeds Street to access the northern routes. Anyone who needs to access Dale Street and Water Street can continue to do so but must now turn left onto The Strand or turn onto Exchange Street East or Covent Garden to get onto Tithebarn Street.
The £3m scheme on The Strand, funded by Liverpool City Council and the NorthWest Development Agency, is being carried out in two parts. The first phase will be completed in October 2006 and has included work to the central reservation, paving and kerbing, the introduction of a cycle lane at the bottom of Water Street, and new signals and pedestrian supercrossings.
The new cycle lane will link with the route across to the Pier Head and the ferry terminals as part of the wider City Centre Cycle Route Network.
A new pedestrian crossing has been installed next to the current pedestrian footbridge which will be removed as part of the second phase of works in 2007. Other works in this phase include changes to the James St junction and the installation of new street lighting.
Councillor Peter Millea, Executive Member for Regeneration, said:
"These changes are a vital part of the City Centre Movement Strategy to help motorists to find the best routes in and around our City Centre. There are more appropriate routes for them to take and we want to encourage them to choose these routes."
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