Concern over city centre cycle route disruption

The works, which have been arranged by Gloucestershire County Council, involved the removal of historic railings and paving slabs

Concerns have been raised about the impact the construction of a new cycle lane is having on Gloucester city centre.

Work has begun to install the new lane on Northgate Street, with railings, paving stones and benches being removed as part of the process..

City councillors claim they did not get a say on the project, which falls under the control of Gloucestershire County Council.

County councillor Joe Harris, Cabinet Member for Highways Maintenance & Communications said he was "sorry to hear" there were concerns but added residents had been consulted before work began.

The cycle lane will form part of the county's cycle spine connecting Bishop's Cleeve with Stroud via Cheltenham and Gloucester.

'It's a disgrace'

Liberal Democrat city councillor Rebecca Trimnell said she hoped the cycle lane would look better than it currently does when it is finished, but was not confident.

"I cannot see it is in keeping with the historic nature of the centre. I have had many people tell me they liked sitting on the benches outside St John's Church on Northgate Street, but now they've been taken out and the railings too," she said.

"At present it is a disgrace and quite frankly a total and utter mess and is simply not good enough."

The works are due to continue until early October

Councillor Harris said that he was sorry for the disruption.

"We really value what the community and local groups think. That's why we held a public consultation and spoke directly with key people like the city council before starting the work.

"We listened to the feedback and made changes where we could", he added.

A Gloucestershire County Council spokesperson said they had "tried to retain as much of the original paving as possible", and some of the removed stonework "has been set aside for future use in the city".

"The current tarmac finish is not the final surface and the final finish will be designed to match as closely as possible to the existing paving slabs," they added.