Burnley’s Town 2 Turf scheme opens after 18 months

Local leaders gathered on Thursday to mark the successful completion of the Town 2 Turf project, with a ribbon cutting being performed by the mayor of Burnley Shah Hussain.

The completing and opening came just days before Burnley FC get their EFL Championship campaign underway away at Luton Town.

The scheme, funded by the UK Government, with match funding from Burnley Borough Council, is aimed at improving pedestrian access between Burnley town centre and the Brunshaw/Turf Moor area.

Wider pavements, improved road crossings and traffic management will make it easier and safer to walk through the area and encourage increased “pedestrian traffic” along Yorkshire Street.

The ribbon cutting , featuring mayor of Burnley Shah Hussain, of Burnley's Town 2 Turf project (Image: ANDY FORD_PHOTOGRAPHER)

It’s also hoped that the improved access to and from the town centre will encourage football fans visiting Turf Moor, home of Burnley Football Club, to make greater use of the town centre, before and after a match.

It will get its first test on August 17, when the Clarets play their first home game of the season against Cardiff City.

The 18-month rolling programme worked its way from Turf Moor to the town centre and included major changes to one of the busiest road junctions in Burnley to make it safer and easier to navigate and improve access to the town.

The project, described as “long and complicated” by a councillor, caused some disruption leading to road closures which impacted some businesses in the area.

Burnley Council contracted Lancashire County Council to deliver the scheme.

The county council also scheduled vital maintenance to the Yorkshire Street aqueduct, known locally as The Culvert, during summer 2023 to reduce overall disruption to the area and avoid the need for further road closures in the near future.

Councillor Lubna Khan, executive member for development and growth, said: “Town2Turf has been a long and complicated project, but it will help transform a key gateway to the town and make it far more attractive for people to use, especially for those on foot.

“This popular route was jaded and in need of investment. It has now been transformed, making it much more pleasant to walk from the town centre to the Turf.

“We are confident that this will have a positive knock-on benefit for the businesses in Yorkshire Street and around the Keirby Walk side of the shopping centre.”

Councillor Aidy Riggott, Lancashire County Council’s cabinet member for economic development and growth, added: "Attracting people to spend time and money, and businesses to invest in our town centres is vital to our economy, making Lancashire a better place to live and work.

"This investment has hugely improved the way this area looks and feels, and will help to attract further investment into Burnley as part of the wider regeneration of the town.

"Providing more space on the pavements, along with the new junction, has improved access to Turf Moor and the town centre, and will make the area safer and easier to navigate.

"It's always challenging to deliver big projects such as this in very busy areas, with some disruption being unavoidable, and I'm grateful for the patience local people and businesses have shown."

Town2Turf is one of a series of works that will create a “corridor of regeneration” running through the town centre from Turf Moor to the Weavers’ Triangle.

These include the transformation of Victoria Mill and Newtown Mill into state-of-the-art campus sites for the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan); the Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) in Lower St James’s Street; and the facelift of the shopping centre’s pedestrianised area.