Traffic lights add to delays in Peterborough city centre

Temporary traffic lights on Bourges Boulevard have added to the delays for drivers in and around the city centre.
Traffic on Bourges BoulevardTraffic on Bourges Boulevard
Traffic on Bourges Boulevard

The temporary lights sprung up this week as part of a five month project which will see a right-turn into the long-stay station car park from near Priestgate installed, as well as a new pedestrian crossing and ramped entrance into the car park.

The start of the works two Mondays ago led to lengthy queues of traffic and cancelled buses, and the disruption had shown no signs of abating by yesterday.

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Stagecoach reported that its 1.23pm Service 6 from Serpentine Green to Queensgate was not running due to “seriously heavy congestion in town because of long term roadworks,” while the Service 31 from Queensgate to Ramsey was delayed by 30 minutes for the same reason.

Traffic on Bourges Boulevard. EMN-180213-165156009Traffic on Bourges Boulevard. EMN-180213-165156009
Traffic on Bourges Boulevard. EMN-180213-165156009

With more than 21 weeks left of the project, the temporary lights have now been installed in both directions near the station car park and by the Posh Fish and Chips restaurant.

This will allow pedestrians to cross the road as the works are currently preventing people from using the underpass near Priestgate.

A Peterborough City Council spokesman said:” We don’t want pedestrians ‘feeling trapped’ and then resorting to crossing Bourges Boulevard without protection as sometimes happens at roadworks.”

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All three sets of temporary lights will be removed once the works have finished, at which point a new set of permanent lights will be installed, allowing for a staggered pedestrian crossing of Bourges Boulevard just north of the Priestgate junction and across the new car park entrance.

The project costs £1.4 million and is being funded by the Greater Cambridge, Greater Peterborough LEP.