Carlisle City Centre Projects
Carlisle City Centre Proposed Enhancements
Public Consultation June 2023
Introduction
In the summer of 2023, Cumberland Council invited residents and businesses to have their say on the proposed development plans for Devonshire Street and English Street in Carlisle.
The schemes, funded by the UK Government’s Future High Street Fund and Town Deal Fund, aim to improve the space for the local community and businesses on Devonshire Street and English Street.
The proposed plans include more outdoor seating, street furniture, benches, cycle parking, trees, and plants. The projects aim to create a welcoming place, with more space for people to walk and spend time sitting outdoors.
The project team have developed designs for the area and were looking to get the thoughts and opinions for the projects.
Carlisle City Centre Projects
There are a number of projects underway within Carlisle city centre, all from different funding sources and with a staged delivery programme.
Over £80m of public funding is being invested in projects around Carlisle City Centre. This aims to maximise the area’s potential and attract and retain more people at the heart of the city.
Regeneration projects at Carlisle Station and the University of Cumbria’s new Citadels Campus will enhance the area and increase footfall. As the Local Highway and Transport Authority, Cumberland Council aims to upgrade the public realm, active travel and pedestrian links to create a suitable environment for those developments.
The Devonshire Street Project
In order to achieve the project objectives of improving the area for local residents and businesses, the proposals for the Devonshire Street include:
- widening the pavements on both sides of the road
- introduction of new seating, trees, and plants
- providing cycle racks
- single lane carriageway for vehicles
- two loading bays
In order to do this, we are proposing to:
- remove the existing bus stops and bus lane
- relocate a bus stop on to Victoria Viaduct (outside Tesco Express)
- remove the existing temporary cycle lane
The timeline for this project is as follows:
English Street
To achieve the project objectives to improve the area for pedestrians, cyclists and people using this area of the city.
The proposals for the English Street project include:
- widening the pavements
- introduction of new seating, trees, and planting to encourage pollinators
- bi-directional cycle lane – the first stage of a new cycle network planned for the city centre
- providing cycle racks
- new raised crossing points for pedestrians
- single lane carriageway for vehicles with a separate lane to turn on to Devonshire Street
- three bus stops
To do this, we are proposing to:
- remove two of the five current bus stops
- relocate a bus stop on to Victoria Viaduct
- remove some of the existing loading and taxi ranks (space will remain outside the new University building)
The timeline for this project is as follows:
Overhead plan and dimensions
Here is a visual of the plan for the area, on this image you can see the extent of all the proposed changes to Devonshire Street and English Street.
The image below provides the dimensions for a cross section of Devonshire street.
The image below provides some dimensions for a cross section of English Street.
Traffic Regulation Order
For the project to progress, we are required to request a change to the Traffic Regulation Order. Part of this requires us to ask your opinion on the changes we are proposing.
This feedback will then be considered later this year and our request will either be approved or refused.
The Traffic Regulation Order specifically relates to changes highlighted on the image below:
Give us your views
Once you have had a look at our display boards, spoken to our team, or reviewed the website, we would be grateful if you could answer a few questions to give us your feedback and help us develop the scheme.
Please note that the survey will close on 1st July 2023.
You can also access a paper copy of the survey at Cumbria House, 107-117 Botchergate, Carlisle (opening hours 09:00-17:00 Monday – Thursday, 09:00-16:30 Friday).
Alternatively, please contact us at our project email address: