The Stanningley Road car share lane in Leeds is going to become bus-only

Councillors are expected to give the green light this week to major plans to transform the A647 Leeds to Bradford corridor to give buses priority.

The cause of congestion in Leeds is too many single-occupancy cars, says transport campaigner

The improvements would see the car share lane on Stanningley Road, which has been in operation since 1998, converted for bus use only and several junction and signal changes carried out.

The council claim journey times into the city centre would be reduced by up to 15 minutes for all traffic, not just buses.

A public consultation on the scheme was held last year and attracted 2,500 comments and 9,000 visitors to its website.

These are the main plans for the Leeds to Bradford corridor via Armley, Bramley, Stanningley, Farsley and Pudsey

- A new bus lane in Pudsey between Sunnybank Lane and Woodhall Park Drive (inbound) and restriction of on-street parking.

- A new bus lane between Thornbury Barracks and Grange Avenue (outbound). These would both be in operation at peak times only.

- New bus priority signals at the Stanningley Road/Swinnow Lane junction.

- A new bus lane (inbound) from Bramley Town End to Wyther Park Mount which would be in operation for 24 hours.

- The Stanningley Road car share lane for cars with more than one occupant would be converted into a bus-only lane to the Outer Ring Road. It is currently one of the worst bus delay points in the city and the council have estimated that around 33 per cent of cars are using it inappropriately. New bus priority signals would be installed at merger points.

- The Mike's Carpets junction in Armley would be reconfigured. The right turn from east to north, straight ahead from south to north, left turn from south to west, and the left turn from north to east would all be removed to improve traffic movements. 200m of new segregated cycle lane would be built.

- A new (outbound) bus lane from Abbot Court to Ledgard Way. Pickering Street to become two-way and the south end of Canal Road would be closed to traffic.

During the consultation process in 2018, around 50 per cent of respondents were in overall favour of the scheme, although the alterations to the car share lane were the least popular proposal.

The council's executive board will meet tomorrow (February 13) where the proposals are expected to be approved.