THE next stage of a rolling programme to repair and improve pavements, street furniture and bollards along Narborough Road is due to begin this weekend.
Leicester City Council is carrying out the scheme in phases to ensure businesses and residents, who have already suffered disruption during lockdown, are not inconvenienced further by the planned improvements.
This latest section of work, which is costing £98,000, will focus on the stretch of Narborough Road from Shaftesbury Road to just after the junction with Saxon Street, and will see repairs to the citybound section of the pavement. It begins on Sunday, May 9, and will last for six weeks.
It will be similar to the recent pavement improvements carried out on the junction of Upperton Road to Equity Road and Westcotes Drive to Shaftesbury Road, which involved replacing broken slabs with concrete blocks, improved drainage, repairs to pavement damage caused by tree roots and installing new bollards, as well as new cycle racks where possible to prevent vehicles parking on the pavement.
In order to carry out the works safely, the section of Shaftesbury Road between Cranmer Street and Narborough Road will be closed to traffic for the duration of the works. Local diversions will be in place and parking will be suspended while the work is underway.
Letters have been sent to local residents and businesses informing them of the work.
Leicester deputy city mayor and Westcotes ward councillor, Sarah Russell, said: “The pavement repairs which have already been carried out over the last few months have made a big improvement to the appearance of Narborough Road.
“It’s a busy area and one of the main routes into the city from the south, so I’m delighted that we have secured this investment, supporting our independent businesses, and making it more attractive for residents and shoppers.”
The work is being funded through Leicester City Council's highway maintenance capital fund.
Previous stages of work saw £175,000 being invested in improving the areas from Roman Street to Briton Street outbound, and also from Westcotes Drive to Shaftesbury Road inbound.
An earlier phase of works begun in March 2020 saw £145,000 spent on repairs in the area between Narborough Road's junctions with Upperton Road and Equity Road.
Cllr Kirk Master, assistant city mayor for neighbourhoods, added: “Projects such as this are an important part of ensuring neighbourhoods stay looking their best and are pleasant places for people to live and work.”
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