WILLS Bros Civil Engineering has secured a £12.19 million contract to deliver the Argyle Street East Avenue project on behalf of Glasgow City Council.
Work on the project will begin in late May, with the aim of improving the public realm on the key city street between the junction at Union Street/Jamaica Street and Glasgow Cross. It will see the creation of improved footways, new road surfaces and cycleways, new green and public spaces, and be delivered over 36 months.
The project will see improved public transport infrastructure through the creation of a new bus route going west to east through the city centre – passing through the current pedestrian precinct – which will reduce journey times, the council said.
The Argyle Street East Avenue scheme will be delivered in four phases, with the first stretching from the junction with Queen Street to the junction with Stockwell Street, the second phase between the ‘Four Corners’ and Queen Street, and the third and fourth between Stockwell Street, Glasgow Cross and Moir Street.
The contract was awarded to Wills Bros following an open tender process, with 23 contractors expressing an interest and four submitting a bid. The bidders were scored on criteria including price, quality, and strengths in key areas such as stakeholder engagement, traffic management, and experience of similar work programmes.
This is the latest project in the Glasgow City Region City Deal-funded avenues programme, which is delivering the biggest transformation in Glasgow city centre since the 1970s. The transformation of Argyle Street through this project complements recent and current investment in major projects on and around Argyle Street and Trongate.
George Gillespie, executive director of neighbourhoods, regeneration, and sustainability at Glasgow City Council, said, “The Argyle Street East Avenue will continue the regeneration of Glasgow city centre through major improvements on one of Glasgow’s most important streets. When complete, the work here will make Argyle Street more attractive to everyone who lives, works, shops, visits, eats, drinks, and invests in it.”
