Bridgewater Place: Leeds city centre bridge set to close with diversions for 'safety of operatives'

Leeds City Council is warning drivers who travel across Victoria Bridge to plan ahead and prepare for off-peak closures of the inbound lane between Sunday, February 4 and Tuesday, February 6.

Victoria Bridge is near to Bridgewater Place and motorists travelling from Junction 3 of the M621 may usually cross it in order to get into the city centre.

The bridge’s inbound lane closure is essential to ensure the safety of operatives working close to the bridge, as part of the ongoing works along Sovereign Street and Neville Street.

The bridge’s inbound lane will be closed during the following times:

* Sunday, February 4: from 7am to 7pm

* Monday, February 5: from 9am to 3pm

* Tuesday, February 6: from 9am to 3pm.

A diversionary route will be in place during these hours, taking motorists along:

Great Wilson Street – left onto Crown Point Road – over Crown Point Bridge and left onto East Street, along to Kirkgate – left along High Court and onto The Calls, following on to Call Lane and then Swinegate.

From there, motorists can either travel onto Bishopgate Street and turn right to access Boar Lane, Lower Basinghall Street and Mill Hill or travel from Swinegate onto Bishopgate Street and turn left to drive along Neville Street heading out of the city centre towards the outbound lane of Victoria Bridge.

All motorists leaving this area of the city centre must travel onto Bishopgate Street (either via Mill Hill or Swinegate) and then along Neville Street out of the city centre towards the outbound lane of Victoria Bridge.

This route will also be used to travel back towards Junction 3 of the M621 and out of the city.

Access to Water Lane inbound via Victoria Road will be maintained as usual.

Coun Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for sustainable development and infrastructure, said: “Closing the inbound lane of Victoria Bridge is unavoidable and essential to ensure the safety of colleagues working on site, but we recognise that some disruption is inevitable and have timed the closure to reduce its impact on motorists and the road network."

Coun Hayden added: “We would encourage motorists who typically travel along this route into the city centre to take notice of the diversion and plan their journeys in advance. This could include allowing extra time, travelling at a different time of day, or considering an alternative method of travel.”