Lancaster power project update

The £2m major power network upgrade to Lancaster, Morecambe and the surrounding area, replacing 7km of underground power cables, is set to continue into March.

By laying the cable in the footway rather than the road engineers have managed to reduce disruption to the public on Caton Road. Unfortunately, due to other utilities (gas, water, etc) being in the footway there is no room to lay the new cable, therefore the excavation work must move into the road with temporary lights controlling traffic. These are expected to be in place for the next 6 weeks.

George Manton, project manager, Electricity North West, said: “I would like to take this opportunity to apologise for any disruption caused. Unfortunately, as we progress with this phase of the project, we are required to lay the cables in the road due to the presence of other utilities in the footway.  This means we need temporary traffic lights on Caton Road until the end of March. 

“We always try to keep any disruption to an absolute minimum, we will have an operator on site manually manning the lights at peak time to minimise travel disruption to the public. We are working closely with Lancashire County Council to keep them informed and will complete the project as quickly as possible.  We would like to thank everyone again for their continued patience and support to allow us to carry out this important work safely.”

Electricity North West will closely monitor the flow of traffic but are advising motorists to allow extra time for journeys and to try to avoid the area where possible. For more information and updates please visit www.enwl.co.uk/lancaster.

This major investment in the city’s electricity infrastructure follows the £2.6m flood defence work at Caton Road substation completed by Electricity North West. The work has lifted key equipment three metres from the ground to ensure it would not be affected by flood water following damage caused when the River Lune burst its banks during Storm Desmond in December 2015.