From zebra to puffin - ‘Heavily used’ crossing on outskirts on Boston to be upgraded, motorists told to expect disruption

The change will take place on the A52 Grantham Road between the Alban Retail Park and Downtown.

However, motorists are being told to expect disruption on weekday evenings and nights during the installation.

Coun Richard Davies, executive member for highways at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “As part of our newly-launched Community Crossings Initiative, we’ll be improving access for pedestrians by building a brand-new puffin crossing on the A52 in Boston near Downtown and Alban Retail Park.

“While on-site, the team will be installing six new traffic signal heads, along with new tactile paving and new road surfacing near the new crossing.

“All being well, we expect to have these works finished by early July, just in time for the summer holidays.”

Puffin crossings are similar to pelican crossings, but have the pedestrian signal lights mounted on the same side as the person wanting to cross the road rather than on the far side of the road.

They also feature sensors to detect when people are crossing the road or waiting to do so.

Work is expected to start on the upgrade on Monday, June 3, and last up to five weeks.

During this time, the road will be closed from 7pm to 6am on weekdays.

Traffic will be diverted via the A1121 Boardsides, the A17 Station Road, and A52 Drayton Road, and vice versa.

This project is part of the ongoing Community Crossing Initiative, which will see over 10 pedestrian crossings built throughout the county (including three in the Boston area). The initiative will cost £3.8 million, with £1.5 million earmarked by executive in 2023 and the remaining coming from a combination of additional county council funding and developer contributions.

Coun Alison Austin, county councillor for Boston South, said: “I’m very glad that this project was selected as one of the county council’s Community Crossings Initiative projects. This is a very heavily-used crossing so these changes will be a huge benefit for everyone in the area.

“Not only will they greatly improve safety for anyone accessing Downtown and Alban Retail Park, but they will also make it much easier for people to get around by foot without the need to move their car from one location to the other.”