It’s the project that has limped on much longer than originally planned – but the final piece of work that was originally part of the Travel Ipswich scheme should be completed by mid-May.
Work to rebuild the St Nicholas Street/Falcon Street junction should be completed by the middle of next month – three and a half years after it was supposed to be finished.
It will include building a “table” to slow down traffic at the junction and removing the pedestrian crossing lights.
There was a delay to work because of problems with underground water pipes – but work restarted last week and is scheduled to be completed by May 17.
The works compound at the top of Queen Street, near Giles Circus, is being moved to Cromwell Square beside St Nicholas Street.
It should improve that area and enable it to become another focal point for town centre events.
Although these works were officially removed from the Travel Ipswich project before it was “completed” last year they were part of its original make-up and were due to be completed between September and November 2013.
The £21million Travel Ipswich project was supposed to transform travel around the town centre – but came under constant fire from drivers and others who said it merely made it more difficult to get around.
There is still work being done on co-ordinating traffic lights on major roads around the town centre.
Queen Street is now paved and pedestrianised. Electricity and other services have been laid into the street to allow Ipswich Market to extend along this route when the Cornhill is redeveloped next year. A county council spokesman said: “There have been delays with that work, but everything is now in hand and it should be complete by the middle of next month.”
The Queen Street/St Nicholas Street/St Peter’s Street route will be signposted as the main link between the Cornhill and the Waterfront through the successful “Saints” area of the town that has become a centre for independent shops and cafes over recent years.
The junction of Queen Street/Falcon Street and St Nicholas Street will have pedestrian priority – even though it is a bus route and the main route to the Buttermarket Car Park.
Ipswich rail station work nears completion with new surface going down
Rebuilding work at Ipswich station forecourt should be largely complete by the end of this week with the final road surface being laid over the next few nights.
That will leave only some fencing and shelters for people waiting for buses or taxis to be installed on the forecourt next week. The following week forecourt streetlights will be installed and the work will be completed.
That will pave the way for the formal re-opening of the station and forecourt – but that is unlikely to take place until after the General Election to avoid it being seen as a political issue.
The station rebuild was completed by Greater Anglia last year at a cost of £1m and the forecourt work was completed by the county council for a similar cost over the last eight months.
The section of Ranelagh Road between the station and the Ancaster Road junction is due to be resurfaced at the
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