Busy Road Closes For Bus Rapid Transit Work
7 June 2010, 10:57 | Updated: 7 June 2010, 12:55
Palmerston Drive in Fareham will be closed from 7 June for five weeks to remove the existing bridge over Palmerston Drive, widen the Palmerston Drive carriageway and build a new pavement.
Pedestrian and cycle access will be maintained along a new route to be provided adjacent to the existing bridge.
The work is part of the preparatory work on the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Phase 1 route, permitted as part of the variation to the terms of the court injunction secured by Hampshire County Council in January, and is able to take place now following the recent relocation of communications cables.
Councillor Mel Kendal, Hampshire County Council’s Executive Member for Environment and Chairman of Transport for South Hampshire, said: “While I am very pleased that we are continuing to carry out as much of the preparatory work in relation to the Bus Rapid Transit project as we are legally permitted to do, these works will also provide an improvement to the current road layout in Palmerston Drive, by removing a pinch point under a low bridge.
“We believe it is important to do what we can to make any improvement in this very congested area. I recognise that it is always difficult to find a time when work has the least impact on traffic, so we will be carrying out the bulk of this work four weeks ahead of the start of the Tesco Quay Street scheme which I hope will go some way in keeping disruption in the area to a minimum.”
Vehicles that would normally enter Palmerston Drive from the A32 (southbound) will be diverted to the Mill Road roundabout and back onto Newgate Lane. Northbound vehicles (from Palmerston Industrial Estate) heading for Redlands Lane will be diverted along Newgate lane, around the Mill Road roundabout and back under the Newgate Lane flyover.
Working hours throughout the road closure will be between 7am and 6:30pm Monday to Friday, and 8am and 5pm on Saturdays.
To see where the works taking place Click here