Kirkstone Pass to be closed at nights for drainage repair works (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Kirkstone Pass to be closed at nights for drainage repair works

9:51am Friday 29th June 2012 in News

THE Kirkstone Pass will be subject to night time closures from Monday July 9 to allow for drainage repair works to take place.

The works have been scheduled to start before the summer holidays begin to minimise disruption and are due to be in place for two weeks.

Work will take place from 9pm until 7am. A spokesman for Cumbria County Council Highways said that a night time closure has been chosen for the works, rather than temporary traffic lights, due to the narrow width of the road and also concerns over the steepness - HGVs and coaches would find a hill start difficult on this section of road, which is the steepest part of Kirkstone Pass, near the summit. Night time working will also ensure the safety of both the road workers and passing traffic.

The road will be open on the nights of July 14 and 15 to minimise the impact on local inns and campsites. All local businesses will remain open during the closure dates. A diversion will be in place during the works via the A5091 (Aira Force), A66 (Troutbeck), St John’s In The Vale , A591 and A592.

County councillor Tony Markley, Cabinet Member for highways, said: “We apologise for any inconvenience these works may cause, however the plans the county council have put in place will ensure that any disruption will be kept to an absolute minimum.”