In the next few days Liverpool City Council will launch a public consultation into proposed public realm upgrade’s around Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool City Council is to launch a public consultation on upgrades to roads around Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium which it says will make them “greener and safer”.
This £4m scheme, part of an ongoing £300m investment programme for Anfield which began in 2014, would see public realm upgrades along Walton Breck Road, Oakfield Road, Pulford Street, Back Rockfield Road and Gilman Street.
On Wednesday, May 22, the consultation process will begin. It will include a trio of public events showcasing how the main road – and connecting streets – leading to the iconic stadium is to be upgraded.
For the new high street scheme, the council is working in partnership with AECOM. Its brief has been to design a visually more appealing and healthier public street scene with a priority to improve pedestrian movement and safety.
As part of the initial design stage, the current proposals aim to improve walking routes, create wider footpaths, install new landscaping and public realm features, as well provide new trees and new underground bins.
A key proposal is a suggested reduction in speed limit on Walton Breck Road from 30mph to 20mph, between the junctions of Blessington Road, and Kemp Avenue to improve safety for pedestrians.
The highways element will also include new improved carriageways and crossings, as well as providing new on-street and resident parking bays with a focus on rationalising car parking, bus stops and taxi ranks.
And there’s a proposal to close access to Back Rockfield Road from Pulford Street, including a safe area for vehicles to turn around.
Outline designs will be on display at a trio of public drop-in events, at The Liverpool Lighthouse, Oakfield Road, L4 0U, on:
- Wednesday, May 22, 10am to 5.30pm
- Thursday, May 23, 1pm to 7pm
- Wednesday, June 12, 12pm to 5pm
- The online consultation also goes live on May 22 and will be open for feedback until Friday, June 14.
Cllr Dan Barrington, Cabinet Member for Transport and Connectivity said: “The redevelopment of Anfield stadium has understandably received global attention, but the works to improve the surrounding community are more important in many ways.
“Creating a healthier, greener, safer and more visually appealing high street will have a major impact on the day-to-day quality of life of our residents in this community, who have already seen a lot of improvements over the past decade.”
Feedback will help shape the outline designs and a report to the council’s cabinet will be submitted in the autumn with a view to appointing a contractor to begin delivering the scheme next spring.
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Feedback from the public consultation about the future for Anfield Square, and a planned way forward will be published in the summer.
Cllr Nick Small, Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Economy and Growth, added: “Enhancing the public spaces along Oakfield Road and Walton Breck Road is a vital aspect and a longstanding goal of the Anfield regeneration programme.”