Following the preliminary works, the renewal of the main will be carried out as follows:

Phase 1

11 August to 1 September
Lower Bridge Street, Castle Drive, Old Dee Bridge and Handbridge.
Old Dee Bridge will be closed from the junction of Mill Street in Handbridge to Lower Bridge Street at the junction of Duke Street and the access to Castle Drive will be closed. Access for pedestrians and cyclists will be maintained at all times.
Traffic will be diverted from Handbridge at the junction of Queens Park Road via Overleigh Road, Overleigh Roundabout, Grosvenor Road and Grosvenor Street. Traffic travelling from the city centre towards Handbridge will be diverted via Grosvenor Street, Grosvenor Road and Overleigh Road. Traffic entering Lower Bridge Street will exit via Duke Street, Albion Street and Volunteer Street or Castle Street.
During this phase of the work, 12 parking spaces outside the Bear and Billet pub in Lower Bridge Street will be closed. Cheshire County Council is currently considering relaxing restrictions on parking on the single yellow line between Shipgate Street and Castle Street to provide alternative parking spaces.

Phase 2

2 September to 29 September
Olave Street to the junction of Lower Bridge Street and Duke Street.
Lower Bridge Street, the Old Dee Bridge and Handbridge will be opened to one way traffic heading out of the city only. There will be no left turn at Bridge Gate into Lower Bridge Street. Duke Street and Olave Street will have left turn only restrictions in place and Shipgate Street will have a right turn only restriction in place.
The diversion route from Handbridge established for phase 1 will remain in place.

Phase 3

30 September to 11 November
Olave Street to Bridge Street
Lower Bridge Street, the Old Dee Bridge and Handbridge will remain open to outbound traffic only but two way traffic may be restored during this phase of the work, providing a safe working distance can be maintained for engineers.
Some work will be carried out outside the Heritage Centre in Bridge Street and a pedestrian island at the junction of Bridge Street will be temporarily removed. Engineers will aim to carry out most of the work in this location between 6pm and midnight to minimise impact on pedestrians and deliveries to city centre shops.

Safety and security of supply

National Grid is planning a significant investment in Chester’s gas supply network over coming years, focussing on the east of the city and the city centre. The investment will allow National Grid to continue to provide a safe and reliable gas supply to homes and businesses across the city and beyond.

Finding out more about the work

If National Grid’s work will have an impact on your gas supply, you will be visited in advance by a National Grid engineer to discuss this. It may be necessary to turn off supplies to some properties for a period of several hours.
The work in the Lower Bridge Street area is being carried by contractors May Gurney under the supervision of National Grid engineers. If you have any questions about the gas mains replacement work, please contact May Gurney, Customer Services on 0161 727 4216.
For information about the diversion routes, parking and alternations to bus services, ring Cheshire County Council 0845 1133311.
Regular bulletins on progress will be posted on the traffic information pages of Cheshire County Council’s website Cheshire.gov.uk/roadworks and issued to the local newspapers and radio stations.