Town centre work well on track as the challenges virus posed are overcome

CHANGES continue to be rolled out as part of a major project in Burton town centre.

As the town battles back from the coronavirus crisis, Station Street is undergoing a facelift in a bid to make it more appealing to shoppers.

The section of the pedestrianised road between the junctions of Worthington Way and High Street is partially closed off to shoppers while the work takes place.

One-way paths are in operation either side of the street so people can still access shops and businesses up to the section with the entrance to Burton Place and Coopers Square shopping centres.

The work comes as part of a £1.4 million facelift of the area scheduled to finish in October.

The spruce-up includes new paving, planted areas which will be packed with flowers, as organisers target making the section of the town more modern and attractive.

East Staffordshire Borough Council is funding the work while Staffordshire County Council is managing the scheme, with work being carried out by infrastructure firm Amey Plc. A spokesman for the borough council said: “During the lockdown period Staffordshire County Council and contractor Amey Highways have been able to continue with the regeneration works on Station Street. The primary decision to continue the work during this time was to try and complete a large amount of the scheme whilst limiting disruption to business owners and members of the public.

“It was decided that the programme of works would be rephased to enable the footways on both sides of the street to be excavated and re-laid with new pavers outside of the shops whilst the street had minimal footfall.”

Councillor George Allen, deputy leader for regeneration and planning policy at the borough council, said: “I am very happy that the work was able to continue whilst the country was in lockdown; it was clearly the right decision. The hard work of contractors on site has allowed a large amount of work to be undertaken with limited disruption to businesses on the street and pedestrians walking in the area.”

“I have visited the site on a number of occasions and have spoken with the project and site managers. I am extremely impressed with the work that has been undertaken to date and I’m looking forward to seeing the changes over the coming weeks.

“I would particularly like to thank the teams on site and council staff for their continued efforts during the difficult lockdown period”.

The county council’s economic