Kirklees Together

As part of our plans to support town centres to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic we are making some changes to how traffic moves around Huddersfield Town Centre. The changes support our ambition to make it easier for people to make a choice about how they travel into Huddersfield town centre whether that is by public transport, in a car, on foot or by bike. They also aim to make it easier for people to keep to social distancing guidelines.

The changes cover eight streets and create more space for pedestrians, whilst also making sure those who need to travel into and park in the town centre are still able to do so.

We are also increasing the number of disabled parking bays available.  Whilst this does mean the loss of some existing, on-street pay and display parking bays, visitors to the town centre will still have access to ample parking in existing car parks. The recently completed car park on the former sports centre site has provided 166 extra parking spaces just a short walk away.

David Shepherd, Strategic Director for Growth and Regeneration said:

“The way we shop and socialise has had to change in response to the pandemic, but this isn’t a bad thing, it’s given us an opportunity to try new things and attract different customers.

We’ve seen businesses come up with innovative ways to stay open, where they have been allowed to, during the lockdown and I am sure we will see more of this restrictions begin to be lifted allowing more businesses to reopen. This is just the start of the recovery journey and we will continue to work with the business community and support the regeneration of the town centres in line with our ambitions as set out in our blueprints.

We are committed to working in a place-based way and that is why the approach we are taking may differ across Kirklees, with safety coming first in whatever we do. I would urge businesses that are getting ready for re-opening to check out the latest advice on our website and get in contact if they need any additional support.”

We are committed to making it safer for everyone to spend time in the town centre, both during the pandemic and moving forward.

We are using Experimental Traffic Regulation Orders to make the changes. These orders allow us to carry out the work before a period of public consultation begins. The measures will be reviewed during the first six months and the public can make comments on the changes during this time period. Anyone who would like to share their thoughts on the changes can email highways.tro@kirklees.gov.uk.

This map outlines the changes.

The following road changes in Huddersfield will come into force on 30 March 2021:

Street	Changes
John William Street	New disabled parking bays Loss of pay and display parking More pedestrian space
Cloth Hall Street	Reduced length of existing disabled parking/loading bay No loading/waiting at any time restrictions Loss of pay and display parking More pedestrian space
Wood Street (east side) between St Peter’s Street and Northumberland Street	New loading bay New disabled parking bay
Wood Street (west side)	No waiting/loading at any time restrictions
Wood Street between Church Street and Kirkgate	Extension to current no waiting/loading at any time restrictions Shortening of existing loading bay
Byram Street	New loading bay New disabled parking bays Loss of pay and display parking bays
St Peter’s Street	New pay and display parking bays as a result of removing sections of current no waiting at any time restrictions
Market Street	Relocation of current disabled parking bay from west to east side of road Loss of short section of pay and display parking
Queen Street	Loading bay to replace disabled parking bay

 

Street	Driving Restrictions
Wood Street between St Peter’s Street and Kirkgate	Closed to all traffic 5pm – midnight on Thursday, Friday and Saturday
Byram Street	Closed to traffic except for permit holders, disabled drivers, cyclists (all times) and loading/unloading (at certain times). Reversal of the one-way restriction between Church Street and St Peter’s Street.
St Peter’s Street	Reversal of the one-way restriction between John William Street and Lord Street.
Church Street	Closed to all traffic