Shirley Road to close for three nights for annual maintenance

Although Southampton City Council has described the closure as "routine", one resident is questioning why the overnight closures from November 21 are taking place at all.

Tony Weafer, 69, member of community group Shirley and Freemantle Watch, told the Echo:  “I’ve had a look up and down the section of the road that’s set to be closed, there’s not one pothole, not anything that needs replacing – I don’t think it’s in need of resurfacing.

“Now, if the works were further down the road – where Shirley Road meets Grove Road – that’s full of potholes.

“The only thing I can think of is that the old Liddle store is being converted into Shirley Health Centre which is supposed to open at the start of next year, maybe the resurfacing is connected to that?”

Tony said the road closure comes as "a big surprise" and the council would be "better off removing the (20mph) markings in the road".

This comes after the city council implemented a 20mph speed limit in Shirley Road back in July, as part of the rollout of 20mph zones in areas including Bassett and St Deny’s.

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Tony added: “People are not adhering to the signage and the 20mph speed limit has not improved anything, though I think that was more implemented by the government than it was the council.

“At the end of the day, if it’s not being enforced it doesn’t make sense.”

In a statement, a spokesperson for Southampton City Council said: “The resurfacing of Shirley Road is part of our routine annual road maintenance programme.

“We will be making carriageway repairs to portions of Shirley High Street beginning Tuesday November 21, 2023, and taking approximately 3 nights.

“Further details and communications to residents will be shared this week.”