Liverpool’s pop-up cycle lanes set to become permanent routes

Work begins this week to convert two pop-up cycle lanes in Liverpool into permanent active travel routes.

Liverpool City Council has appointed A E Yates Ltd to upgrade the cycle lane on Crown Street and create a new lane along Catharine Street, between Caledonia Street and Upper Parliament Street.

The £2m scheme will feature fully segregated cycle lanes on both sides of Catharine Street, connecting cyclists to Princes Avenue’s award-winning lanes.

This initiative is part of the Council’s Active Travel programme and includes:

• New segregated cycle lanes
• Dropped kerbs and tactile paving
• Carriageway reconstruction
• Pedestrian crossing at Catharine Street/Canning Street junction
• Road drainage works
• Road markings

Additionally, improvements will be made to a second pop-up cycle lane in the Baltic District, with upgrades at Jamaica Street, Grafton Street, and Kent Street junctions.

Supported by Active Travel England’s Active Travel Fund 2 and the City Region Sustainable Transport Settlement, construction starts today (Monday, 8 July) and is expected to take six months, subject to weather conditions.

Work will occur weekdays from 8 am to 5:30 pm.

Signal upgrades will be introduced at Canning Street and Upper Parliament Street junctions, restricting right-turns at Catharine Street and Upper Parliament Street.

An Experimental Traffic Order (ETO) will monitor the changes, followed by a public consultation post-completion.

Councillor Dan Barrington, Cabinet member for Transport at Liverpool City Council, said: 

“We want Liverpool to be a great cycling city, and to do that we need to provide the infrastructure that encourages people to get on their bike. 

“This investment will enhance what was temporarily created during Covid and, crucially, will fill in the gaps to provide a seamless journey.

“There’s more to do, which is why we’re investing in more cycle lanes, but the jigsaw pieces are beginning to fall into place and over time all this work will have a huge impact on people’s health and Liverpool’s air quality in the long-term.”

Simon O’Brien, Walking and Cycling Commissioner for Liverpool City Region, said: 

“It is fantastic to see this new funding being unlocked, to really help us push forward with our plans to help create a network of walking and cycling routes that befits the city.

“We’ve got some great active travel infrastructure, but we need to make sure it’s properly linked up so people feel confident that they can travel easily and safely by bike or on foot – that’s what this funding will help to do.

“These kind of schemes are going to help change the way we think about travelling around our local area.” 

For more info on cycle lanes visit the Liverpool City Council website.

For the latest news in the city click here.