Leeds City Council has scheduled three nighttime road closures on the southbound A643 at Armley Gyratory, beginning on April 2 and concluding on April 10.
These closures align with the council’s efforts to facilitate safe site access during the Easter school holidays, following the successful replacement of the Gelderd Road footbridge in January. Integral to the Armley Gyratory scheme is the enhancement of pedestrian and cyclist facilities, as well as the replacement of the current footbridges over Gelderd Road and Spence Lane.
The newly installed Gelderd Road and Spence Lane footbridges feature accessible ramps to better cater to the needs of non-motorized users and individuals with disabilities. The recently enhanced footbridges are engineered to require minimal maintenance and inspections over the coming decades. Coordination for these projects is meticulously planned, particularly in alignment with the National Highways’ efforts on the M621 scheme, spanning across the city.
Motorists are informed of a two-night closure from 8 pm to 5:30 am on Tuesday, April 2, and Wednesday, April 3, to facilitate the completion of the Gelderd Road bridge work. Additionally, there will be another night closure on Wednesday, April 10. During these closures, the Armley Gyratory approach to A58 Wellington Road southeast exit and Ingram Distributor A643 southbound will be inaccessible, but they will reopen outside of these specified hours. A diversion route measuring 5.5 miles will be in effect to guide traffic.
A temporary diversion will be implemented for pedestrians or individuals using wheeled transportation at the Armley Gyratory footway. This diversion will remain in effect until the summer of 2024, concurrent with the construction of the new bridges. Please note that the progress of the work and its activities are contingent on weather conditions, which may potentially lead to alterations or delays in the scheduled tasks.
The ongoing phase two of the Armley structure program includes:
- Completion of bridge construction for Spence Bridge (2a) by summer 2024.
- Completion of bridge construction for Gelderd Bridge (2a) by spring 2024.
- For Wellington Road Bridge (2b), the existing bridge will be removed by summer 2024, followed by construction over autumn/winter 2024/25, subject to final design and approvals.
Councillor Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for sustainable development and infrastructure said:
“It was fantastic that we replaced Gelderd Road footbridge in a single weekend in January and amazing achievement by the project team and contractors. Carrying out these final touches needs access to the underside of the bridge and require road closures to undertake the work safely.
“Please plan ahead after the Easter weekend on the nights of the 2, 3 and 10 April and follow the short road diversions in place. We thank everyone for their ongoing patience while we continue to work hard to minimise disruption and thank those who have already changed the way they travel into and around the city centre.
“These bridges work represent transformative changes to the overhead footways for people walking and wheeling – making it easier to get across the gyratory, either going or away from the city centre. The works are also a bridge engineering challenge, as well as programme challenge to carry out, with the least disruption as possible. I look forward to seeing these new footway structures built and open in the summer.”
Additional information regarding the ongoing works and any potential future weekend closures can be found on the project’s website www.armleygyratory.commonplace.is
