City centre masterminds are going deeper underground by carving out a huge hole on Aberdeen’s Union Street as the biggest project of its kind in 200 years gathers momentum.
Work on the central stretch of the city’s high street has been going on since June.
The first section to be excavated was between Market Street and the St Nicholas kirkyard, and the area remains hidden behind massive hoardings.
Ultimately, the entire stretch up to Bridge Street will be transformed – with wider pavements, new granite slabs and bike lanes added.
The £20 million facelift is hoped to restore some much-needed sparkle to the Granite Mile.
Workers had been poised to move on to the second stage once the first one is done and dusted – then focusing on the road between the graveyard and Union Bridge.
However, this 100m strip has now also been sealed off and excavated… And quizzical passersby have been wondering just what’s up with that massive hole in the road?
Six months on, what’s happening with Union Street central revamp?
To recap, the scheme will be carried out in three phases – coming one after another.
The whole project is expected to take about 18-20 months, with the final stretch from the bridge to Bridge Street completed by the end of next year (if all goes well).
For the last six months, workers have been digging through and untangling wires, pipes and other utilities that have lain beneath the surface for centuries.
They have even dug up old tram tracks buried beneath the carriageway.
However, it’s understood that astonished workers were met with a messy “spaghetti” once they cut through the top layers this summer.
What’s the deal with the big hole outside Primark?
With the job proving to be a lot trickier than initially expected, project leaders have slightly rejigged their plans.
And they have now begun early investigations into what lies underneath the second stretch of road so they can be prepared for any challenges that may arise.
This latest “exploration” of historical utilities is supposed to help keep the project on track and ensure it will be completed in time – without any unexpected delays.
A spokeswoman for Aberdeen City Council said businesses in the area will be kept in the loop with any progress on the ongoing scheme.
She added: “The exploratory works for the second phase are to better understand historical utilities or road construction and if required, work out design solutions before the main works starts in that section.”
When are the works going to be completed?
There is still a long way to go until Union Street sparkles again, with the whole central stretch expected to be completed by the end of next year.
However, visitors will be able to start seeing some change within the next few months.
The first phase between Market Street and St Nicholas kirkyard is progressing according to plan and is expected to be finished by March.
What do you think of the Union Street revamp plans? Let us know in our comments section below
Workers have now started working on the pavements and will soon begin putting out new granite sets, sourced from an Aberdeenshire quarry.
They will start construction of the second strip once this is all completed.
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