What £40m Halifax town centre road scheme will mean for you - junction by junction

The £40m earmarked for the regeneration of Halifax town centre will see a totally revamped road system be developed.
Portland Place and Prescott Street, HalifaxPortland Place and Prescott Street, Halifax
Portland Place and Prescott Street, Halifax

Calderdale Council has described the project as a once-in-a-lifetime transformation of the centre and the more detailed designs show the proposed improvements.

The designs were shaped by feedback from local people and businesses.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For commuters many of the junctions on the eastern and western corridors will be redesigned with the aim of easing congestion and improving travel flow.

Commercial Street and Ward's End, HalifaxCommercial Street and Ward's End, Halifax
Commercial Street and Ward's End, Halifax

Here we look at what is planned along the corridors.

Western corridor

The A629 western corridor stretches from the junction with Prescott Street to the south to the junction with Cross Hills to the north. This route section is approximately 1km in length and provides the main orbital route around the western side of Halifax Town Centre.

So what will be done at the specific junctions?

Bull Green roundabout, HalifaxBull Green roundabout, Halifax
Bull Green roundabout, Halifax

Junction 1 – Prescott Street: A single southbound lane will be introduced on Portland Place. The left hand turn from Portland Place into Prescott Street will not be allowed.

Junction 2 - Commercial Street: Particular turning movements will be banned at this junction. There will be no left and right turn exit from Commercial Street (north). Drivers will not be able to turn left from Ward’s End into Commercial Street and the right turn into Ward’s End from Commercial Street will be banned. The proposed junction would operate under a simplified traffic signal staging arrangement and traffic flow on the adjacent Powell Street would be reversed from southbound to northbound

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Junction 3 – Bull Green roundabout: The roundabout will be completely removed and a new traffic light system will be introduced. Part of the aim is to improve the traffic flow from Bull Green on the corridor. The proposed design also includes traffic signal control at the junction with George Street and Cow Green, permitting left and right turn exiting movements.

Junction 4 - Pellon Lane: The plan is to close off the Central Street exit to general traffic, expect for cycles. The hope is to reduce the number of traffic signal stages resulting in less “lost time” at the junction with a more efficient operation. New pedestrian crossings will be introduced as well.

Pellon Lane and Central Street, HalifaxPellon Lane and Central Street, Halifax
Pellon Lane and Central Street, Halifax

Junction 5 - Orange Street: The third hand lane that allows a right hand turn from Broad Street into Waterhouse Street will be removed. However, drivers will still be able to turn right at the junction.

Junction 6 - Northgate/Winding Road: Northgate will be closed to traffic outside of Northgate House. This includes closing the existing bus exit from the bus station with buses to enter and exit the station via Winding Road.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Junction 7 - Cross Hills: To maintain operational efficiency of the junction a gating strategy is proposed whereby traffic is held on North Bridge Street and Cross Hills and metered onto the western corridor, in particular during the PM peak period.

Eastern Corridor

Broad Street and Orange Street meet HalifaxBroad Street and Orange Street meet Halifax
Broad Street and Orange Street meet Halifax

The eastern corridor stretches from the junction with Water Lane to the south to the junction with the A58 to the north. The eastern corridor is approximately 1.6km in length and provides the main orbital route around the eastern side of Halifax town centre.

Junction 8 - Charlestown Road Roundabout - The northbound offside flared lane will be extended to improve capacity, in particular during the PM peak period. This is achieved by widening the highway on the north side of Charlestown Road outside the Gledcliffe apartments.

Junction 9 - Charlestown Road Retail Park access: The roundabout will be replaced with a priority controlled junction, increasing priority for Charlestown Road as the mainline.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Junction 10 - Bank Bottom: A realigned new highway will be created which connects Church Street with Charlestown Road. This will see the removal of the roundabout. The provision of right turn pockets from the eastern corridor into Southowram Bank Road, Cripplegate and Berry Lane will be created. A new access to Matalan off Berry Lane will also be made.

Junction 11 - Horton Street/Rail Station: Square Road will be closed and Church Street re-aligned. This will create a new public space outside the Square Chapel, the new Library and on the Station Bridge. The northern car park of Eureka will be re-designed to accommodate relocated parking and vehicular access from Station Bridge whilst also maintaining existing Eureka! parking. There will be an improved bus/rail interchange through the provision of new bus stops on the eastern and northern sides of the new public space. The proposed scheme is dependent on the removal of the existing Hughes Corporation building and the closure of Station Bridge to traffic.

Junction 12 - New Road/Prescott Street: The roundabout will be removed creating a through road from Church Street into South Parade. A new junction will be created from Prescott Street onto Church Street. This would result in the closure of New Road.

Halifax Bus Station's exit, Winding Road, HalifaxHalifax Bus Station's exit, Winding Road, Halifax
Halifax Bus Station's exit, Winding Road, Halifax

Subject to approvals, the work is due to start on site in early 2019 and be completed by 2021 / 2022.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

To achieve the full range of benefits, Calderdale Council, subject to Cabinet approval, will need to purchase land. Negotiations are underway with the landowners to purchase the plots required to deliver the scheme.

Whilst negotiations with landowners are currently under way and are the preferred approach, the council, subject to Cabinet approval, will start the Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) process just in case it is needed.

The West Yorkshire Combined Authority’s Transport Fund has been part-funded through the Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) Growth Deal – a £1 billion package of Government funding to drive growth and job creation across the Leeds City Region. The aim is to create around 20,000 new jobs and add £2.4 billion a year to the economy by the mid-2030s.