Bank Street, Rawtenstall - Accessible and Vibrant Town Centre project

Overview

Bank Street, Rawtenstall 

This project will include various improvements to streets and public spaces across Rawtenstall town centre, including Bank Street, Kay Street, Newchurch Road, and St. Mary’s Way. It aims to provide improved spaces for people to spend time in, to encourage more people to walk, cycle, wheel, and use public transport, and to create a more prosperous local economy. 

At the northern end of Bank Street, there will be an upgraded crossing on Newchurch Road, helping to improve access to and from the market and the wider town centre. The corner of Bank Street opposite the market will be refreshed with high quality pavement surfacing, new tree planting, and space for public seating where people can rest. 

Between Newchurch Road and St Mary’s Way, the road will be narrowed, and the pavements  will be made wider, increasing accessibility for all users, and creating space for businesses to use for outside dining or displays. A number of trees will be planted in the widened pavement on the south side of Bank Street between Kay Street and St Mary’s Way. High quality surfacing will be used on the pavements and for the spill-out space for businesses, including the re-use of existing York stone paving. The road will be converted to one-way (except for cyclists) in the northbound direction on Bank Street from St Mary’s Way to Newchurch Road. In addition, the one-way traffic direction will be reversed on Kay Street and Back Lane (East) and a ban on traffic turning right out of Bank Street to Newchurch Road will be implemented, to prevent rat running and improve the nature of the high street. 

Parking, blue badge, and loading bays will be positioned at selected locations on Bank Street for visitors to use and for deliveries to shops and businesses. Additional pedestrian crossings will be provided to make it safer for people to cross Bank Street and access shops and amenities on both sides of the street. Pedestrian crossings of side streets along Bank Street will also be raised to the same level as the footways to make it easier and safer to cross. On Kay Street, the electric vehicle charging points will remain, with a hackney carriage stand also relocated along the street. 

Improvements to St Mary’s Way are also proposed between Bank Street and Bacup Road. Outside the shops, pavements will be widened, with new green planted verges introduced to improve the street setting by separating people from the busy traffic. 

This image provides an illustration of some potential improvements for Bank Street, Rawtenstall. To view the proposed designs for the project please click the link below:

Designs for Bank Street, Rawtenstall - Accessible and Vibrant Town Centre project