Major Sheffield road to close in next two weeks as Sheffield prepares for social distancing

Pinstone Street will be closed to traffic in the next two weeks as Sheffield City Council implements a variety of measures across the city to ensure safe social distancing and encourage walking and cycling.

Footpath widening has already been introduced in many areas across the city to make it ‘as safe as possible’ for people to travel on foot as Sheffield moves into the next stages of lockdown.

The next phase of works will see the introduction of road closures and cycle lanes, designed to encourage people to make significant changes to how they get around the city.

Pinstone Street forms a central part of the project- footpaths will be widened between Cross Burgess Street and Furnival Gate to support social distancing.

This will also include the full closure of Pinstone Street past the Peace Gardens to all traffic except pedestrians and cyclists.

The measures will initially be put in place using temporary barriers, but will soon be replaced with a step-free pavement.

Councillor Bob Johnson, cabinet member for Transport and Sustainability at Sheffield City Council, said: “It’s been great to see people already using the widened footpaths we’ve recently put in place to help everyone stay safe while walking in their neighbourhoods.

“We’re now going even further and introducing new road closures and cycle lanes that will give people the opportunity to try out a new way of travelling around our city as we move into new phases of lockdown and help to make sure that social distancing is maintained.

“We’re incredibly ambitious about encouraging Sheffielders to make lasting changes in their daily lives following this experience that will improve their health and wellbeing going forward, as well as helping to create a safer, cleaner city.

“We will of course continue to monitor and review these measures regularly so we can make adjustments as necessary.

“Please do try out the new measures in your area and if you can think of any further locations you think could benefit from pop-up active travel infrastructure, you can suggest these on Sheffield City Region’s interactive travel map.”

Bus routes on this street will be diverted. Vehicle access from Furnival Gate into Pinstone Street (northbound) will remain open to ensure that the construction of key Heart of the City regeneration sites, and deliveries, can continue.

As part of the Pinstone Street scheme, a complementary road closure of Upper Charles Street will also be introduced. This will provide widened footpaths, cycle link, and the possibility for outside seating areas.

Division Street will also be partly pedestrianised from Westfield Terrace to Rockingham Street (between the Frog and Parrot and the Great Gatsby.) This will be implemented over the Bank Holiday weekend.

As temporary cycle lanes are introduced in the city centre, an initial additional 50 cycle spaces will also be created.

In addition to the Shalesmoor Cycle link, which will provide a fully segregated cycle path between Shalesmoor Roundabout and Corporation St, additional road closures will be implemented in Kelham to create a low traffic neighbourhood. All routes will still be open for people to walk and cycle to promote active travel in the Kelham and Neepsend Community.

Outside of the city centre, changes to support social distancing, such as footpath widening, will also be introduced in communities across Sheffield, include Gleadless Town End, Manor Top, Frecheville, Chapeltown, Stocksbridge, Darnall, Hillsborough and Crookes.

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