Copyright manchestereveningnews
It’s been a long day at work for a 28-year-old woman living on Chapel Street in Salford city centre. In the evening, she gets into bed for some rest before another busy day in the office, and has a demanding job that involves travel to London. But that’s exactly when the problems start. To see planning applications; traffic and road diversions and layout changes; and more, visit the Public Notices Portal HERE The resident said 'loud drilling sounds' echo down Chapel Street at night where a major revamp is taking place. Works started in April and were expected at the time to bring disruption to the area until spring 2026. The council is aiming to ‘rebalance’ the street in favour of cyclists and pedestrians as well as catering for buses, general traffic. It's a key route not just in Salford, but also for access to Manchester city centre over the River Irwell. The latest phase of work is focused on resurfacing the road, but much of this happening at night to minimise disruption during the day according to the programme of works. It has left people living in the area feeling sleep deprived. Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE The resident on the street, who did not want to be named and moved to the area in March, said: “Every time this happens I can’t get more than three or four hours of sleep, I’ve tried earplugs and airpods and everything. “It will get to midnight or later when drilling happens and it wakes me up.” Last week the resident sent a complaint to Salford council, sent at nearly 2am, which was written with 'loud drilling happening outside on the street.' Salford council said the works on Chapel Street are due to finish in early December, several weeks ahead of schedule. Coun Mike McCusker, the lead member for planning, transport and sustainable development at the council said: “We are working hard to balance the need to complete the project to support the wider regeneration of the area with our commitment to minimising disruption for residents and businesses. “While we aim to carry out the noisiest tasks during daytime hours, this isn’t always feasible and can relate to safety reasons. "Our aim is to reduce disruption as far as possible, including limiting the loudest activities to before midnight and advertising all night works on our website, via WhatsApp, social media, email updates and physical letters in the area with two weeks’ notice." The woman said she was ‘not informed at all’ about work on the street at night, other than the odd message from her estate agent hours before late works are due to begin. The programme for Chapel Street states the project is ‘nearing the end’ and that workers are on the job at night to make sure people are still able to use the road during the day. But the 28-year-old resident added: “The toll it’s taken on me and my partner has been really bad because of sleep deprivation, I’ve gone to my GP over it. “I know that improvements need to be made but I don’t understand how it can be allowed with nightworks when it’s such a residential area. “I’ve called Salford council and been passed around from post to post and been told to just send an email.” When the works started in May, a staggering picture showed dozens of buses stuck in traffic on the road. According to the resident on the street, the congestion issues have not gone away. “The traffic has been horrendous during the day because of the roadworks," she said. “People have been waiting 45 or 50 minutes just to get through Chapel Street to get home. “I’ve missed appointments because Uber drivers don’t want to drive there.”
