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Future highway design projects

This is where you will find details of our future highway design projects.

City centre improvements

Commercial Road is a long street, running broadly north-south which joins Edinburgh Road at its southern end. Commercial Road connects to Stanhope Road to the south with a visual connection to the railway station and beyond that the Civic Square. To the west, Edinburgh Road meets Unicorn Road aligned towards the historic exit from the naval dockyard. It is bordered by a series of Victorian public houses, which give this part of the street a strong character and appearance distinct from its southern arm.

The masterplan for Commercial Road is designed to enhance the length of the street by the use of a strong, well defined, linear feature which will encourage pedestrian flow. Parallel lines forming 'tramtracks' will define the street and open out to make a series of wider spaces along the length of the street. As they part, the diverging lines of the tramtracks will create new spaces and modify the tempo of the street, encouraging people to slow down and engage with their surroundings, whilst accentuating important nodes or decision–making points.

The tramlines are a reference to the historical character of the street, its importance as the main shopping street and through route in the heart of Portsmouth. Whilst evoking the street's past, the tramlines will be interpreted in a contemporary and three dimensional form, restructuring the street and defining the style of a new uncluttered landscape. The street is designed to be a clear and legible backdrop to the diverse collection of architectural styles of the adjoining buildings and for a number of prominent features along its length.

A multi use gathering and performance space will be located at the junction of the two streets. The market place will be relocated to a new site on either side of the performance space at the junction with Edinburgh Road. New lighting and integrated public art will enhance and help define the individual spaces along the route.

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