People urged to support Commonwealth Games cycling event
People are being urged to come out and support a cycling event which will go through the borough in August as part of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
The time trial event will see cyclists whizzing through a number of streets on Thursday August 4 as a significant part of the route passes through the borough.
The race starts and finishes in Wolverhampton, but much of the course will run along the streets of Dudley, taking in key sites such as Himley Hall and Coronation Gardens.
The route runs through Dudley town centre from Birmingham New Road and passes Coronation Gardens and Stone Street Square. It also takes in Sedgley and Gornal before heading past the historic Himley Hall.
A number of road closures have been announced this week to help safely facilitate the event.
The following roads will be closed from 5am to 6pm on August 4 (in full, unless stated):
- A459 into Sedgley Bull Ring – Sedgley
- Dudley Street (A459), High Holborn – Sedgley
- Tipton Street / Sedgley Road (A457) – Sedgley, Upper Gornal & Woodsetton
- Birmingham New Road, northbound lanes between the A457 and A4037 – Upper Gornal & Woodsetton
- Priory Road (A4168) – Castle & Priory
- The Broadway (A459) – Castle & Priory
- Birmingham Street, Ednam Road, Priory Road, Priory Street, St. James’s Road (between Trinity Road and Stone Street), Parsons Street, Ednam Road, Priory Road (to The Broadway) – St. James’s
- The Broadway (A459), Priory Road to Ednam Road – Upper Gornal & Woodsetton
- Burton Road (between Traquain Drive and the A459) – Upper Gornal
- Burton Road, Kent Street, Clarence Street, Dudley Street – Upper Gornal
- Moden Hill – Upper Gornal & Woodsetton, Sedgley
- Catholic Lane – Sedgley
- Gospel End Street, Gospel End Road, Cotwall End Road – Sedgley
- Straits Road – Gornal
- Summit Place, Gornal
- Brick Kiln Road – Gornal
- Himley Road (between Guys Lane and Dudley Road, B1476) – Gornal
Councillor Patrick Harley, leader elect, said:
This is a significant event through the heart of Dudley and gives us an opportunity to showcase what we have in the borough on an international stage.
This is our opportunity to be part of a global event and I am delighted we have been chosen to do that.
It will of course naturally cause some disruption to roads while it is on, so I would urge people to check out the list of road closures and plan their journeys accordingly.
As well as the road closures, there will also be temporary traffic management measures and parking restrictions in place around the day of the event to ensure public safety.
Further information is available on the Commonwealth Games website.
Games organisers will be making direct contact with residents and businesses on the roads affected, as well as those on marooned or landlocked neighbouring roads. They will be making them aware of the closures as well as offering advice on how to prepare for the disruption caused by the time trials.
In addition, a series of sessions will be held at Dudley Council House and Dudley Town Hall. They can be attended virtually or in person and are for vulnerable residents and businesses of “strategic importance”, for instance GP surgeries and supermarkets.
They will take place as follows, with the link for people to attend virtually:
Thursday May 19: Dudley Town Hall, 11am to 1pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/337365428077
Thursday May 19: Online only, 2pm to 3pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/337383732827
Thursday May 19: Dudley Town Hall, 5.30pm to 7.30pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/337377163177
Wednesday May 25: Online businesses only event, 7am to 8.30am
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/337393632437
Thursday May 26: Queen Victoria Primary School, Sedgley (Sedgley businesses only event), 5pm to 7pm
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/337398577227
Information on road closures and traffic restrictions will also be added to our Commonwealth Games hub on the council website, which can be accessed at https://www.dudley.gov.uk/things-to-do/commonwealth-games/