It's back to normality: Motorists warned of city centre roadworks after lockdown
Commuters returning to Wolverhampton city centre following lockdown have been warned they will face a familiar irritation – roadworks.
The final stage of the multi-million pound extension of the Midland Metro in Wolverhampton has got underway, bringing warnings of further traffic disruption in the city centre through spring and summer.
The Metro line has been extended along Pipers Row in order to connect it with the new train station, which is continuing to be rebuilt as part of a £150 million transport overhaul.
Final sections of track will be laid outside the train station when work on it is completed. From today, work to extend the footpath on Bilston Street is being carried out. One lane will be closed to traffic, while pedestrians will be advised to follow a short diversion route via the subway.
Further works will take place along Pipers Row during spring and summer, with drivers warned this will result in temporary traffic lights and the reversal of traffic via Snow Hill.
The Metro scheme has caused years of disruption to city centre motorists and the latest restrictions will come in as workers could be returning to offices and other workplaces following the lockdown.
Paul Brown, Midland Metro Alliance construction director, said: “Our return to Wolverhampton to complete the final stages of construction for the Metro extension signals a really important step in the project and I am delighted that these works are now getting under way.
"When complete, the Wolverhampton city centre Metro extension will provide a much-needed boost to public transport by allowing people to easily change between train, tram and bus. We do appreciate that our works can cause disruption and we will continue to work closely with the Wolverhampton Council, Wolverhampton Business Improvement District and our partners at Transport for West Midlands to minimise impact wherever possible.”
Anne Shaw, director of network resilience at Transport for West Midlands, said: “These final activities in Wolverhampton are expected to be less disruptive than previous works but they do come at a time when Covid-19 restrictions are slowly being lifted and more people are making daily journeys again.
"With this in mind, we’re urging all those travelling through the city centre to think about their journey and allow additional time for any traffic management measures which may be in place, either in the road or footpaths.”
