Pendle ready to welcome cycling’s elite

Road closures and travel delays are expected as the Tour of Britain comes to Lancashire on Monday.
A giant cyclist constructed from 1,500 metres of horticultural fleece is being installed on Pendle Hill overlooking Clitheroe this week. This image is for illustrative purposes only and shows the Barley side of Pendle Hill, not the Nick.(s)A giant cyclist constructed from 1,500 metres of horticultural fleece is being installed on Pendle Hill overlooking Clitheroe this week. This image is for illustrative purposes only and shows the Barley side of Pendle Hill, not the Nick.(s)
A giant cyclist constructed from 1,500 metres of horticultural fleece is being installed on Pendle Hill overlooking Clitheroe this week. This image is for illustrative purposes only and shows the Barley side of Pendle Hill, not the Nick.(s)

The second stage of the tour will take place around Pendle and the Ribble Valley and traffic levels are expected to be higher than usual due to the arrival of thousands of spectators. A number of roads will be closed or partially closed to allow the race to take place safely.

County Coun. John Fillis, Lancashire County Council’s cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “We’re really looking forward to welcoming the Tour of Britain to Lancashire for a stage which will show off our beautiful county to a worldwide audience.

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“We’re asking people to think ahead now about their travel plans for the day. Some disruption is inevitable in the local area whether you’re planning to watch the race or simply need to travel for other reasons.

“The more people think ahead about how their journeys may be affected, and make use of the information available, the smoother it will be for everyone.”

Delays are expected on the following major roads – A59 between Copster Green and West Marton, A56 between Broughton (nr Skipton) and Burnley, A682 between Gisburn and Nelson and the A6068 between Padiham and Nelson.

Many minor roads near the route throughout Ribble Valley and Pendle will also be affected, along with a number of bus services.

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In Clitheroe, road closures will operate from 4am until 1pm in Woone Lane at the Eshton Terrace junction, Castle Street, King Street, King Lane, Church Street, Church Brow, Wellgate, Albion Street and York Street.

Road closures will be in place on Pendle Hill, the first King of the Mountain section, from 8-30 until 11-30am, from the Pendleton junction to the T-junction in the centre of Sabden.

Parking will not be allowed on The Witch side of Whalley Road in Sabden but Falcon House and St Mary’s will allow their car parks to be used for the day. It is also advised for cars on the Post Office side of Whalley Road to be moved as well as there are expected be spectators along the route and cars might get damaged.

Much of the route in Pendle and the Ribble Valley will be subject to rolling road closures. This means that the road will close as soon as the first police vehicle goes past, followed by the peloton of cyclists.

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It will open again once the last police vehicle passes. The rolling road closures could be in place between 20 minutes and an hour, depending on how big a distance there is between riders.

Over in Earby at the second King of the Mountains section at Bleara Road, local farmers off Stoneybank Road and Bleara Road have made arrangements with Pendle Council to open their fields alongside that section for spectators and extra car parking.

Driver are advised to get a position early and to follow sign posts and instructions from race marshals.

In Earby, Stoney Bank Road will be closed from its junction with Reeval Close to the junction with Old Skipton Road.

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In Barley, road closures will be in place from The Avenue, along Barley Lane to the Four Lane Ends crossroads at Annel Cross Moor.

The closures will be in place from 6am until 3-30pm, but will be managed to allow access for local residents until 11am. There will be no access after 11am.

The final 8km of the race route will have to be kept free of parked cars. Road closures in Colne town centre will be in place between 5am and 9pm from Primet Bridge to the finish line by Santander Bank and on to the Market Street and Keighley Road junction. Several adjoining streets will also be closed all day.

More details at www.pendle.gov.uk/TOBstage2. Estimated timings and a route map are available at tourofbritainstage2.co.uk