City Square highways improvements

1. Consultation to date

In 2016, we started the conversation on transport in Leeds, as part of the Connecting Leeds vision of Transforming Our City Centre. Through this early engagement over 8,000 responses were received, informing us of the key changes people wanted like to see made, including at City Square. Since then, we have engaged local businesses and stakeholders.

Targeted consultation on the City Square scheme with residents and businesses took place in spring 2021, focusing on ensuring that the scheme does not adversely affect the operation of or access to businesses or residential properties.

Public consultation during August and September 2021 showed an overall positive reaction to our plans.

2. Introduction

Video showcasing how journeys will look after the scheme is delivered.

City Centre Package and Connecting Leeds

The City Square scheme is part of the Leeds City Centre Package, a programme of works designed to support the growth of Leeds as set out in the Leeds City Region Strategic Economic Plan.

Connecting Leeds is Leeds City Council’s ambition to improve travel for those who live, work in, and visit the city. We have an ambitious vision for Leeds: to create a world-class city that allows for seamless travel not just within Leeds, but regionally, nationally, and internationally. The City Square scheme will help to achieve this vision by making better use of road space, improving pedestrian and cycle routes, and promoting use of public transport.

City Square

City Square is a public square located by the Queens Hotel exit of Leeds Rail Station and is a busy thoroughfare for pedestrians, cyclists, buses, and cars. As a result, the square and the area around it is often congested, meaning drivers and bus users experience delays at peak times. This congestion also leads to poorer air quality and a less pleasant environment, with negative impacts felt by local residents, businesses, and commuters.

The scheme aims to reduce the volume of traffic in City Square, while maintaining access to key destinations via other appropriate routes. This will enable the transformation of the public space in City Square in preparation for Leeds City of Culture 2023.

Who we are

The City Square improvements, as part of the City Centre Package, are being delivered by Leeds City Council in partnership with the West Yorkshire Combined Authority. The Combined Authority works with local councils and businesses to ensure that everyone in our region benefits from a strong economy and a modern, accessible transport network.

3. City Square context

Proposals for City Square are complemented by a number of other planned changes to how people move to, through and around Leeds city centre. We have developed our plans for City Square with these other changes in mind, making sure they connect into each other and provide mutual benefits.

The map below gives an overview of the key schemes being brought forward in the city centre and is colour-coded to make clear which projects form part of the City Square scheme. You can download the plan by clicking here.

Map of complementary schemes in Leeds.

City Square proposals

Improvements to roads, cycle paths, footpaths and bus routes around the square, and closure to general traffic. 

• Creation of a bus gate on East Parade. A ‘bus gate’ is a short section of road blocked off to all traffic except buses and (where specified) other authorised vehicles, indicated by appropriate signage.
• Potential improvements to the signal-controlled junction of King Street, Wellington Street,   Whitehall Road and Aire Street.

Traffic management to help control construction impacts on traffic will be put in place in the city centre and Holbeck during works. Once the scheme is built, traffic management in both locations may change further to accommodate new traffic movements.

Other schemes

1. Localised widening at the junction of Great Wilson Street with Meadow Lane to enhance traffic capacity at the junction.
2. New traffic lights at the junction of Globe Road and Whitehall Road, implemented in partnership with an adjacent development.
3. Access improvements to Leeds City Rail Station via Bishopgate, including relocating buses and taxis from New Station Street to Bishopgate Street. This change will be supported by improvements to Boar Lane, providing a more walker-friendly route to the relocated bus stops with improved wayfinding delivered as part of the City Square scheme. You can find out more about this scheme on the Leeds City Rail Station Commonplace page.
4. Leeds Public Transport Investment Programme bus improvement scheme, complemented by better walking, cycling and pedestrian facilities on the Headrow and Cookridge Street. You can find out more about this scheme on the Headrow And Cookridge Street Commonplace page.
5. Leeds Public Transport Investment Programme bus improvement scheme, complemented by better to walking, cycling and pedestrian facilities on Infirmary Street and Park Row. You can find out more about this scheme on the Infirmary Street And Park Row Commonplace page.
6. Leeds Public Transport Investment Programme bus improvement scheme, complemented by improvements to the public space around the historic Corn Exchange. This includes restricting car access, providing better pedestrian crossings, providing more green space, and enhancing bus stop facilities. You can find out more about this scheme on the Corn Exchange Commonplace page.
7. Upgrades to Armley Gyratory, including improved walking and cycling routes. You can find out more about this scheme on the Armley Gyratory Commonplace page.
8. M621 Junction 1 to Junction 7 Route Investment Strategy road improvement scheme, including additional lanes for traffic at the Junction 2 roundabout and Junction 3 westbound, and conversion of the hard shoulder into an additional lane for traffic.

5. City Square proposals

The City Square scheme is made up of changes to the square itself, as well as changes to adjoining streets, primarily to accommodate the changing traffic movements caused by the closure of the square to general traffic.

The map below sets out the main proposals for city square. You can download the plan by clicking here.

Proposals for City Square and adjoining streets. 

6. East Parade bus gate

As part of the scheme, a new bus gate will be created on East Parade. This bus gate will only allow access to public transport, taxis and authorised vehicles.

The plan below shows the bus gate in more detail, including how it complements improvements to cycling and walking facilities. You can download the plan by clicking here.

East Parade bus gate proposals

 

New bus gate on East Parade, looking north

New cycleway on Calverley Street, looking towards The Headrow 

 

7. How journeys will change

We know that the changes we are making will significantly change how pedestrians, cyclists, bus users and drivers move around the square and the city centre.

A key component of our scheme is making the city centre accessible to all users and modes of transport, with a focus on promoting travel by foot, bike, and public transport. This includes improving connectivity for onward journeys and interchange options between different forms of transport, including rail, Park & Ride and bus.

The below details some of the key changes for different kinds of journey.

Pedestrians

• Fewer cars and less congestion means improved safety and air quality, making City Square a more pleasant place to spend time.
• Fewer lanes of traffic and fewer crossing points will provide better routes and roads that are easier to cross. For example, pedestrians travelling between the train station and Quebec Street/Infirmary Street will not cross any lanes of traffic.
• Improved pedestrian routes on Quebec Street and Wellington Street, with widened paths and new surfacing.
• Provision of level pedestrian areas to improve accessibility, with the level of the carriageway brought up to kerb level on City Square.

Bus users

• Improved bus journey times and reliability, as buses will no longer have to compete with general traffic in the area.
• Creation of new bus gates on City Square, King Street, along East Parade and on Neville Street under the Dark Arches (part of another scheme). A bus gate is a signposted stretch of road, on which use is restricted to public transport and (where specified) taxis and other authorised vehicles.
• New bus stop facilities on Boar Lane westbound, complementing improvements to Bishopgate Street.
• Wellington Street will become one-way eastbound between City Square and the junction with King Street, with bus stops relocated to the other side of the road. This will provide bus users with an alternative bus stop close to the train station.
• A new southbound bus stop will be provided on King Street, offering another alternative stop close to the train station.

New bus stop facilities on Boar Lane, to be delivered in advance of the main City Square work

 

Cyclists

• Fewer lanes of traffic and fewer crossing points providing better routes and less conflict with vehicles, increasing safety.
• Provision of dedicated and high-quality cycle paths, including around City Square.
• Improved east-west and north-south connectivity.
• Proposals for cyclists complement the proposed new 700-space secure cycle storage hub at the junction of Bishopgate Street and Neville Street bridge.

Drivers

• Closure of City Square to all traffic except taxis and buses. Drivers travelling to the city centre will still be able to do so via Boar Lane, Bishopgate Street and Mill Hill. These journeys will be easier and less congested, as through traffic will no longer be going via the city centre.
• Existing Blue Badge parking bays will be maintained.
• Directional signage across the city centre will be updated to reflect the routing changes.
• Provision of new Park and Ride sites around the city will reduce reliance on cars when accessing the city centre.

Changes to some common journeys are listed below and the plan below shows alternative routes for cars driving into the city centre.

• For motorway journeys from Junction 3 traveling north-west, traffic will be encouraged to stay on the motorway until the junction 2 exit and travel through Armley Gyratory and along the A58 towards Woodhouse Lane and the north-west. The highways improvements at Armley Gyratory and on the M621 will help make this journey smoother.
• We will also be providing a new means of access for traffic traveling towards Sheepscar, with traffic being encouraged to stay on the M621 until Junction 4 and exiting on the John Smeaton Viaduct on the Ring Road.

Taxis

• Hackney carriages will have access through City Square via the bus gates. However, access to Wellington Street/Quebec Street from Bishopgate Street will no longer be via the road in front of the Queen’s Hotel, but instead via Infirmary Street and King Street.
• Private hires will not be able to access City Square through the bus gates but will still be able to access the rear of the station to pick up and drop off.
• Access for pick up and drop off at private premises is not affected by our scheme.

How strongly do you agree or disagree that our proposals will improve the experience of travelling though the city centre for the following methods of transport?

Our proposals include a number of improvements to how cyclists will travel through the city centre. This includes new segregated cycle lanes, more direct routes for cyclists and new cycle crossing facilities at Boar Lane/Bishopgate. Our proposals will also improve safety by closing City Square to general traffic.

Our proposals include a number of improvements to how pedestrians will travel through the city centre, including wider pedestrian routes that cross fewer lanes of traffic and minimising the number of roads that need to be crossed to get around the area.

Our proposals include a number of improvements to bus facilities, including new bus stops and bus gates*. We will also improve bus journey times by removing general traffic from City Square, enabling buses to flow more freely.

*A bus gate is a signposted stretch of road, along which use is restricted to public transport and (where specified) taxis and other authorised vehicles.

Our proposals include a number of changes to how drivers will travel through the city centre. 

If your destination is the city centre itself, you will still be able to use your car, but you will no longer be able to pass through City Square. Our proposals focus on removing through traffic from the city centre and increasing usage of the inner ring road through the delivery of enhanced capacity at Armley Gyratory and (in partnership with Highways England) on the M621.