Town centre trafficchaos to continue

However, assurances have been made that at least one of the town’s affected routes shouldn’t have to be dug up again until around the year 2099!

SGN, the company formerly known as Scottish Gas, has announced that another busy town centre route, Kildare Road, will be closing in a fortnight, again for pipe replacements.

A spokesman for the company said this week: “We’re investing £26,000 to upgrade our gas network in Kildare Road. This essential work involves the replacement of old, metal gas mains with new plastic pipe to ensure a safe and reliable gas supply for many years to come.

“Following discussions with South Lanarkshire Council, our project will start on Monday, April 1 and will last approximately three weeks.

“For everyone’s safety, Kildare Road will be temporarily closed, just north of its junction with Hall Place, for the duration of the project. Access to the local Tesco will only be available via St Leonard Street and Hall Place. We’ll also ensure access to Kildare Road car park will always be available via St Leonard Street.

“Everyone can find more about our work in the area by searching on roadworks.org. We also use social media and traffic bulletins to keep residents and motorists informed.”

SGN project manager David Black said: “A lot of planning has gone into this project and we’ll be doing everything we can to limit disruption.

“We appreciate that roadworks can be frustrating, however, the new plastic pipe has a minimum lifespan of 80 years.

“This means once the work has been completed, Lanark homes and businesses will enjoy the benefits of a continued safe and reliable gas supply for many years to come.”

A council source has told the Gazette that, while the recent disruptions seem chaotic, they area actually co-ordinated to ensure the bulk of necessary works in Lanark are done in one go rather than causing repeated disruptions through piecemeal works over a longer period. In the meantime, works are still ongoing in replacing the stairs at Lanark Station. It is thought that renewing the half-century old main entrance to the station will take at least another fortnight. The only current access is via the Bus Stance.