Local people and politicians are up in arms about plans to permanently shut a section of Anfield Road
Local people and politicians are up in arms about plans to permanently shut a section of Anfield Road
Liverpool FC has been accused of a “betrayal” of local people after announcing plans to permanently close a section of road close to the club’s famous stadium. Last week, the ECHO revealed how the Reds’ have submitted a planning application to Liverpool City Council which, if approved, would see a section of Anfield Road – running between Skerries Road and Alroy Road – permanently shut to motorists.
The chunk of road has been closed to drivers since the summer of 2021 when work on the expansion of the Anfield Road stand at the stadium started. After numerous delays, that construction was eventually completed in 2024 and while the chunk of road has reopened to pedestrians and cyclists, it remains closed to vehicles and the club wants to keep it this way.
A planning application has been lodged with the local authority seeking the permanent closure. It is a move that has sparked anger amongst local residents and their political representatives, who said they were promised the route would reopen when the stand was completed.
Deborah Shepley, who lives in Alroy Road told the ECHO: “It’s a nightmare because you have to go all the way around. I will argue with them over this.
“I would like to see it reopened. We got told when they started building that (the stand), that we would have a road through it. I will argue with them all day long not to close that road.
“We want that bit of road reopened. We were promised it would reopen again. They shouldn’t be able to do that.”
Another local resident, Dean Wilson, said he also wants the section of road reopened but doesn’t expect it to happen.
The 47-year-old said: “I don’t drive but when I go shopping and get a taxi home, it’s a pain. It’s an extra two nicker to get my shopping home from the ASDA and that adds up over the course of the year.
“In all honesty, people going against it, it’s not going to make a difference is it?
“I would rather you could still drive down it. When it first happened I think most people around here thought it would stay closed. We’re not surprised to see these plans go in.”
Liverpool FC bosses say that while the road is suitable for use by vehicles, they have identified security concerns about the increased risk of vehicles being in close proximity to the stadium.
They say analysis shows there has been no adverse capacity or safety issues stemming from traffic being diverted onto other routes since Anfield Road was first closed.
The club also sees the ‘placemaking benefit’ to the local community of keeping the road closed to vehicles – providing greater accessibility to Stanley Park, particularly with the added global interest in the stadium arriving with concerts from international stars like Taylor Swift.
The Reds have agreed to fund and carry out works at the Anfield Road/Arkles Lane junction in a bid to mitigate the effect of the closure and improve the mobility of additional pedestrian and cycle movements in the location.
But this seems unlikely to assuage the feeling locally. A woman who lives in Skerries Road, who asked not to be named, told the ECHO: “When they were doing the stand, they said they would reopen the road again. We used to be able to drive in and we can’t do that anymore.
“The players all drive through there but we can’t. We have lived here for 20 years and we know what it’s like living by the ground but we are not happy at the way they do things.
“They said it would reopen. But they don’t seem interested in what the residents think. We already had 18 months of hell when they were doing that stand.”
She added: “We don’t feel consulted. We only saw about the planning application in the ECHO, we will object to that.”
If Liverpool are successful in getting the section of road closed permanently – it will also be in spite of local political opposition.
In a joint statement, Anfield councillors Billy Marat and Lena Simic said: “As local councillors, we have already made it clear to Liverpool City Council and Liverpool Football Club that residents do not want Anfield Road to be closed to vehicles.
“Residents feel betrayed by LFC. Planning permission was given on the basis that the road would remain open to vehicles. This permission was made following a public consultation where residents’ concerns were “supposedly” taken into consideration. It now looks and feels like LFC is going beyond what was agreed in the permission and ignoring the concerns of the residents.
“Over several years we have asked questions about the legal status of the road. Who does the road belong to? How is it that it now appears that it is owned by LFC? And where do the boundaries of the road property actually lie?
“It seems that health and safety concerns over the road being open have been raised since the completion of the stadium extension works. However, is it not the responsibility of a developer to ensure that construction is safely managed and that any works affecting a public highway meet agreed standards?
“Furthermore, if there are now major health and safety concerns over the road remaining open as was planned, this raises questions about whether or not what was agreed at the planning stage has been properly delivered.”
They added: “Our primary role as local councillors is to represent our residents and we will therefore engage in the democratic process by objecting to the planning application and will be informing the affected residents in the area about the issue via street letters so that they can put in their own objections too.”
One of those local residents is Ian Byrne, the MP for Liverpool West Derby and former local councillor, who lives close to the ground of the club he supports. He says there is now a “deep sense of betrayal” at the club’s intentions.
He told the ECHO: “It’s deeply personal to me. I was one of the councillors with Billy Marat and the dearly departed Ros Groves who did the consultation on this and created the agreement with the club where they agreed to reopen the road once the stand was built. That was why they got the buy-in from the community.
“This was an agreement between the club and the city and it should be honoured. It has caused such anger in the area. It just feels like the club being tone deaf.”
A statement attached to the club’s planning application for closing Anfield Road states: “Liverpool Football Club would like to maintain the section of Anfield Road between the existing bollards as pedestrianised to support pedestrian and cyclist movement in the local area and enhance integration with Stanley Park.
“Survey data has shown that this space has become popular with pedestrians travelling between the stadium and park, as well as supporting through movements by cyclists.”
The statement adds that the club believes the move will “avoid vehicle conflicts between vehicles and pedestrians and address concerns about vehicles being in close proximity to or colliding with the stadium.”
As with all planning submissions, the application will be considered through Liverpool Council’s statutory planning process. There will be a period of public consultation, with neighbouring properties notified by post and ward councillors informed directly.
The application will be assessed on its planning merits and against relevant local and national planning policies before a decision is made.
