{"id":440872,"date":"2026-02-23T07:32:12","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T07:32:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/440872\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T07:32:12","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T07:32:12","slug":"it-has-caused-chaos-1-3m-cycle-lane-dug-up-for-the-third-time-cycling-news-bike-reviews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/440872\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cIt has caused chaos\u201d: \u00a31.3m cycle lane dug up for the third time – Cycling News | Bike Reviews"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Business owners in Chorlton have said that fresh roadworks, which have seen the Manchester to Chorlton cycleway dug up less than two years after it opened, are impacting trade.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Workmen tore up a stretch of the bike lane on Manchester Road, which is part of the \u00a313.4m, four-mile route linking south Manchester with the city centre.<\/p>\n

The scheme was described as the city\u2019s flagship cycling corridor and was completed in April 2024. However, traders say that the road has been dug up for the third time in under two years, leaving them frustrated at what they describe as repeated disruption.<\/p>\n

\"CharltonCharlton Bee Network Construction, July 2025 (Image Credit: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

Shiva Raaval, the manager at Lily\u2019s Deli, told the Local Democracy Service<\/a> that the latest works had begun on a busy weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo first they closed the whole road for building the bike lane, and then they dug it up again to do some pipework, and now they\u2019re digging again for electric pipes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey started digging on Saturday afternoon, and the weekends are the busiest days for us,\u201d he said. He added that the vibrations were making glasses and tables shake, further disrupting his customers.<\/p>\n

> Cyclists outnumbering drivers at rush hour on busy Glasgow road, as campaigners hail \u201ccolossal\u201d impact of safe cycle lanes<\/a><\/p>\n

Karmal Arafa of Framing Manchester added that the area had felt noticeably quieter. \u201cIt has caused chaos out front here with traffic. A lot of our customers come by car,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Production Manager, Justin Mitchell, also described the situation as \u201ca bit of a nightmare\u201d, pointing to the loss of car parking in the area as a longstanding grievance among some customers.<\/p>\n

He said that \u201cpeople get angry because basically they\u2019ve taken all the car parks away in Chorlton. So, everyone coming in, that\u2019s their biggest gripe, is like there\u2019s just nowhere to park. And now the road works as well, there\u2019s absolutely nowhere to park.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ManchesterManchester Road, Chorlton, July 2025 (Image Credit: Google Maps)<\/p>\n

James Madden, the owner of bar and caf\u00e9 99 Reasons, also added that the noise is \u201cwild\u201d and barriers were discouraging customers from sitting outside.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe noise isn\u2019t great. People don\u2019t want to sit outside, really. It\u2019s a little bit much, but we\u2019re just hoping it\u2019ll be done soon. You\u2019ve just got to battle through.<\/p>\n

However, he added that this disruption is better than the previous two, saying, \u201cIt\u2019s not as bad as when they did the cycle lane, and we had a fence outside for four or five months, like a big set of stockpiles.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, this, in comparison, is not as bad. It\u2019s just a bit more noisy, but they\u2019re cracking on and getting it done at least.\u201d<\/p>\n

> \u201cI blindly get on the bike every time and just hope I get home alive\u201d: Mayor says \u201ccar-centric\u201d cycle lane cuts are impeding road safety plans and putting cyclists in danger<\/a><\/p>\n

The current works are not being carried out by Manchester City Council or Transport for Greater Manchester.<\/p>\n

Electricity North West confirmed it had commissioned the excavation to install a new connection to the power network for a nearby development.<\/p>\n

\"ChorltonChorlton Cycleway Wilbraham Road junction (Manchester City Council) (Image Credit: Farrelly Atkinson)<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for SP Electricity North West said: \u201cWhen carrying out work, we always try to avoid cycle lanes, but, due to the location of the new connection, it was unavoidable.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the work we carry out is agreed with the council in advance, and once complete, we will reinstate the cycle lane to its original condition.\u201d<\/p>\n

> Why do cycle lanes get so much stick online?<\/a><\/p>\n

The company said the work is expected to be completed by Friday, February 27.<\/p>\n

The Manchester to Chorlton route forms part of Greater Manchester\u2019s wider \u201cBee Network\u201d ambitions to create 1,000 miles of cycling and walking routes across the city region, including 75 miles of Dutch-style segregated lanes.<\/p>\n

When plans for the Chorlton corridor were first unveiled,<\/a> Cycling and Walking Commissioner Chris Boardman said the aim was to make cycling and walking \u201cthe natural choice for short journeys\u201d and create \u201cworld-class streets where people want to socialise and relax\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Business owners in Chorlton have said that fresh roadworks, which have seen the Manchester to Chorlton cycleway dug…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":440873,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-440872","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440872","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=440872"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/440872\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/440873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=440872"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=440872"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=440872"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}