Prestwich High Street improvement plans – give us your views

Residents, businesses and shoppers are being asked for their views on a £2 million project to regenerate the main road through Prestwich village.

The aim is to give Prestwich a lively high street, full of independent retailers, with a much improved environment and measures to tackle congestion.

Proposals have now been drawn up by Bury Council with the help of the Prestwich Township Forum, Township Regeneration Group and the A56 Design Group.

The scheme aims to:

• Improve the town centre environment for all
• Improve pedestrian movement and accessibility
• Support local businesses
• Attract additional public and private investment
• Reduce the impact of traffic while maintaining traffic flow

To achieve these aims, however, it is not physically feasible to have two lanes of traffic running in both directions due to the width of the road.

The budget for improving Prestwich town centre is £2 million. Bury Council is providing £1.5 million and is securing a further £500,000 from Transport for Greater Manchester.

Councillor Mike Connolly, leader of Bury Council, said: “I know that the people of Prestwich have been very keen to see improvements along Bury New Road, which plays such an important part in the life of the village.

“With the help of our partners and people in the community, we have put together these options which aim to create a much better environment for shoppers and pedestrians while still trying to keep the traffic moving in a highly congested area.

“We are determined to improve every part of our borough, which is why the council has put aside money in two successive budgets to specifically improve this part of Prestwich.“I urge everyone to get involved and take part in the consultation.”

Official consultation on the plans starts today (Monday 16 November). You can have your say via the council’s website at 

http://www.bury.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=11863

 and you can drop into Prestwich Library over the coming weeks to view the proposals and ask staff questions.

Proposal 1

This comprises: single lane traffic with wider pavements, permanent parking bays, new bus lay-bys, bus stop relocation, dedicated cycle lanes and improved public realm.

• Wider pavements - on both sides of the road (east and west) to improve pedestrian access and encourage shoppers to browse.
• Bus stop relocation – the stop outside 491 Bury New Road (Ellie Magpie) will be combined with the bus stop at 463 Bury New Road (NatWest). Moving the bus stop away from the junction of Fairfax Road will improve traffic flow.
• Bus lay-bys – toimprove traffic flow and make it easier for passengers to get on and off buses.
• Pavements extended at key crossing points – making it easier and safer forpedestrians to cross the road.
• Improved environment - trees, new street furniture, better lighting, upgraded paving and seating will redefine pedestrian areas and improve the on-street environment.
• Permanent parking bays - vehicles will be able to park for up to one hour at any time of day (no return within one hour) in permanent parking bays. Parking in the carriageway will not be allowed, to reduce congestion and improve customer access.
• Single lane running - sections of the A56 currently have two lanes of traffic running in both directions. When vehicles park on the inside lane it blocks traffic, causes lane-swapping and adds to congestion. Single lane traffic which is clear of parked vehicles (from junction of Bury New Road/St Mary’s Close (Prestwich Church Institute) to the junction of Fairfax Road/Chester Street) will keep traffic moving and ease congestion.
• Dedicated cycle lanes – toimprove facilities for cyclists in both directions. Cycle lanes will run southbound (towards Manchester) from Fairfax Road to St Marys Close, and northbound (towards M60) from Church Lane to Chester Street.
• One way system along Clifton Road – tostreamline traffic flows along Clifton Road/Bury New Road while retaining vehicle access for residents. Access onto Bury New Road will be via Chester Street. With one way traffic, the double yellow lines along one side of Clifton Road could be removed to create additional parking. Short stay parking places would also be put in place with limited waiting of up to one hour (no return within one hour).
• Closure of Warwick Street junction – toreduce hold-ups on Bury New Road by stopping traffic turning onto Warwick Street. It also allows for the construction of a new bus lay-by (outside NatWest).

Proposal 2

Narrower pavements than Proposal 1 to allow space for a northbound (towards M60) peak time combined bus and cycle lane.

• Bus lay-bys – on thesouthbound carriage way (towards Manchester) only.
• Wider pavements and improved pedestrian environment – pavements on the west side of the high street are only slightly wider than existing widths to allow for a dedicated bus/cycle lane.
• Permanent parking bays – on thesouthbound carriageway only (towards Manchester) with limited waiting of one hour (no return within one hour). Parking bays on both sides of the road is not an option because of the shared northbound bus/cycle lane.
• Shared northbound bus/cycle lane (towards M60) – to operate 7-10am and4–7pm in the northbound carriageway only. The shared lane would run from Chapel Street to Clifton Road. When the bus/cycle lane is not in operation, on-street parking with the potential of affecting traffic flow will be allowed with limited waiting of one hour (no return within one hour). There would be short sections of dedicated cycle lane before and after the shared bus/cycle lane. A cycle lane would also run between the Red Lion and St Mary's Close on the southbound carriageway.

Councillor Jane Black, chair of Prestwich Township Forum and Regeneration Group, said: “I am delighted that the fully-funded proposals for the road will now be put to public consultation.

“This major investment will benefit residents, businesses and commuters, and help with the ongoing regeneration of the Prestwich village centre. I now want to encourage everyone to take part in the consultation, which runs right up to Christmas.”

ENDS

Press release issued: 16 November 2015.