City centre development gets underway
Work on Oxford Road moves on to next phase
As work continues on the Oxford Road corridor, next week sees the development reach a major milestone.
Manchester’s Brook Street will re-open on Sunday following the successful completion of work required for the redevelopment of the former BBC site.
The reopening of Brook Street means that developers can now turn their attention back to Oxford Road providing a unique opportunity for the corridor’s three transformational schemes to carry out work at the same time between Booth Street and Whitworth Street.
There will be further closures however as Oxford Road will be closed for five weeks from Monday 13 February, causing some disruption to car and bus routes. Travel advice and more information about the work is available on the TfGM website - www.tfgm.com
During the road closure Manchester Metropolitan University will carry out works to improve its infrastructure and resilience, while, at the same time, the Circle-Square development on the old BBC site can continue to carry out essential utility connections from the Oxford Road side of their site.
Meanwhile,Transport for Greater Manchester’s work to create a European-style bus and cycle boulevard will continue with much of it also taking place within the closed site, while one-way working towards Whitworth Street will enable them to add the final touches to this part of its scheme towards the city.
TfGM has already completed the section between Hathersage Road and Booth Street, transforming the space for bus passengers and cyclists. This latest phase means TfGM has only one more section of work left to complete one of the city’s most significant highway projects.
To ensure that all the works can take place safely and efficiently, Oxford Road will remain closed be closed to all traffic between Booth Street and Charles Street while an inbound lane restriction will stretch from Charles Street to the junction of Whitworth Street.
This phase of work is expected to be completed by Friday 17 March.
Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “The myriad of major projects and transport improvement schemes on Oxford Road represent some of the most transformational development the city has seen for some time, helping to create a world-leading 21st century city.
“Combining three key programmes of work in to a single closure makes sure we can limit disruption to commuters and visitors, and means we can look forward to the completion of the Bus Priority Package in just a few weeks’ time after more than three years of work.”