The Liverpool 10k - 2006

'New Course' under consideration for Liverpool 10k.

Despite receiving very good reviews from runners last year, the Liverpool 10K course is having to relocate from the city centre for 2006 at least. 

Many runners achieved P.B.'s on the flat, fast route from the Pier Head to the old Garden Festival site using Strand, Wapping, Seton Street and Riverside Drive before returning. However, a high number of complaints were received by Liverpool City Council before and after the race from residents and businesses along Sefton Street and Riverside Drive about the use of these roads. 

The situation was compounded by a flyer put through every household on that particular stretch advising them that they would be held 'prisoners in their own homes' for up to six hours. The flyer was supported by three local Labour Ward Councillors and objections officially raised about the actual staging of the race. Consequently the use of Sefton Street and Riverside Drive has been under scrutiny for 2006. 

In addition, the ongoing redevelopment work along Strand has made the situation even more difficult and the suggestion of closing off the road on both sides this stretch of road (even on a Sunday morning!) has proved too difficult. Anyone who took part in the Half Marathon in March will have noticed that the race was confined to the city side of Strand to allow vehicular access to and from the Albert Dock and also to allow traffic flow from south to north.

As a main arterial road, the Strand is effectively the single most important route across the city and as such the Merseyside Police and Liverpool City Council Highways Department are reluctant to consider total road closures along this stretch.

Given these obvious difficulties it is not possible to use the 2005 course. A proposed course for 2006 will use Sefton Park as a start and finish point. The park will be used as an out and back course taking in -

Start - Mossley Hill Drive, clockwise around the park to Greenbank Drive and Croxteth Drive.  Exiting the park via Aigburth Drive, the course moves on to Croxteth road up to the entrance to Princes Park then down Devonshire road and into Princes Park. 

The route then exits the park via Windermere Terrace back through Aigburth Drive and on to Sefton Park to follow it anti-clockwise back to the finish.

View a map of this years course (Pdf, 70KB)

If you have any comments about the use of city roads and location of race venues please e-mail 

Regards 

Alan Rothwell

'Run Liverpool Inititive'