Member Article

Work resumes on £3.4m plan to boost economic heart of Preston

After a pause over the Christmas period, work is once again underway on the Fishergate Central Gateway project to renovate the centre of Preston.

The project, funded by £1.38m from the European Regional Development Fund and £2m from Lancashire County Council, aims to create a pedestrian-friendly street and a city centre that will attract more business investment.

Work is now underway to temporarily narrow the footway on the block between Santander building society and Cafe Nero. This is being carried out to provide more road space to enable traffic to continue to flow as work moves across to the other side of the road in the week commencing Monday 27 January.

During the same week, work will begin on the stretch of Fishergate from the Pound Bakery to Phones4U. This work will mean the bus stop there, serving bus services 111, 115 and the Park and Ride service, will temporarily move to outside the Fishergate Centre.

The longer-term plan is that by the end of the project, all three bus stops on Fishergate will move outside the railway station to create a transport hub. Work is also due to start on Corporation Street, between Fishergate and Ringway. The road will remain open but with narrower lanes and drivers may face some disruption.

As part of this phase of the work, six mature birch trees will be planted outside the Premier Inn on Ringway. These are the first of 39 trees that will be planted as part of the scheme, including 14 on Fishergate, which will transform the look of the city centre.

Trees will be planted in sets of six as and when phases of the scheme are completed. Work on the project as a whole will see footways replaced with new granite flagstones and small set stones used to indicate informal crossing areas in the carriageway.

New trees will be planted and contemporary street furniture installed, along with a new signing system pointing out key locations in Preston. Footways will be widened with traffic reduced to one lane. County Councillor John Fillis, Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport, said: “It is great to see work continuing at

a pace on this important project which will completely transform Fishergate, resulting in a much more attractive environment, and attracting new business to the city. I’m looking forward to seeing the end result.

“Preston plays a key role in Lancashire’s economy so new jobs and investment have a positive impact on the rest of the county. Transforming Fishergate is the first phase of a longer term strategy that we’re working on with Preston City Council to develop the city centre and surrounding area.”

Phil Barrett, director of Lancashire Highway Services, said: “This project will create a much more attractive environment in the city centre, but some disruption is unavoidable while the work takes place so we’re asking people to be patient. However, all businesses will be accessible throughout the works.

“There will inevitably be some delays to traffic so we’d ask motorists to avoid using Fishergate if another route is available to them. “We’re keenly aware of the potential impact on businesses in the short term, so are doing all we can to minimise disruption and won’t be obstructing the entrance to any business during opening hours.”

The aims of the Fishergate Central Gateway project are to improve two of the key approaches to Preston city centre. The main areas involved are the stretch from Preston railway station up Fishergate as far as Lune Street, and Corporation Street from the junction with Ringway up to Fishergate and along Ringway to the Friargate crossing.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .