Long stretches of queues have built up around the city centre and particularly on Kirkstall Road as work to remove the Gelderd Road footbridge at Armley Gyratory is carried out.
Roads around the site have been shut as well while the works on bridge – which is now 50-years-old and has a narrow 1.8m wide footway – are undertaken.
A weekend of partial closures have been in place since Friday evening and remain so until 5.30am on Monday, meaning that drivers are likely to face disruption on Sunday too.
The A58 Wellington Road south east exit and Ingram Distributer south bound on Armley Gyratory will be closed during these hours with Leeds City Council mapping out a near 18-mile diversion.
Below are some pictures taken by our photographer today of the “absolute chaos”.
7. Inner Ring Road gridlocked
The A58 Wellington Road south east exit and Ingram Distributer south bound on Armley Gyrator have been closed with Leeds City Council mapping out a near 18-mile diversion. Photo: steve riding
8. Plan ahead
Ahead of the closures Coun Helen Hayden, Leeds City Council’s executive member for sustainable development and infrastructure, said: “Please plan ahead for the weekend of January 12 2024 and follow the road diversions in place." Photo: steve riding
9. The road closure
She added: "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. I look forward to seeing these new footway structures built and open by the summer next year.” Photo: steve riding
10. Kirkstall Road
The Yorkshire Post's Daniel Sheridan also shared this picture on X, writing: "Waiting for a bus in Leeds? They’re all stuck on Kirkstall Road thanks to the latest barnstorming scheme to close some of Armley Gyratory on a Saturday." Photo: Daniel Sheridan
11. Further works on route
In October, the Spence Lane footbridge was removed from the route and is also set to be replaced by a new footbridge. Photo: steve riding
12. Wellington Road closed
The new bridges will be constructed to the latest specifications, providing a wider bridge deck of four metres and accessible ramps, which the council says will significantly improve accessibility and safety. Photo: steve riding