Most towns and villages announce entry into their area with signs on or near their boundaries. The Boundary Signs announcing entry into Alderley Edge had been in place for many years and were certainly more than ten years old.
They were in a very poor condition, many have faded to the point they couldn't be read and were beyond any maintenance, and at least one has gone missing. They had become an eyesore and reflected very badly on the appearance of our village and something needed to be done.
The options were to replace them or have the signs and the posts taken down. There was likely to be little difference between the costs of either option and it was decided by the Parish Council that they should be replaced.
One of the features of Alderley Edge is the large number of roads that lead into our village; hence we have a lot of signs. We managed to locate the positions of ten signs, some were hard to find due to the encroachment of hedges over the years.
The design of the new sign is little different than those that have been replaced; it is not exactly the same as the old sign due to changes in standard sign sizes. Consideration was given to other more complex designs, but the style of the original sign was kept to keep the costs of replacements down. The costs of the new signs will be under £4000 and they are required to last at least ten years.
Most of the work replacing signs has been completed this month, except that there is still work to be done at the remodelled A34 Roundabout. All the road signage at the roundabout at the end of the Wilmslow bypass and start of the Alderley Edge bypass needs to be replaced as part of the new bypass scheme. Location and erection of a new boundary sign here will be part of this scheme.
Photos: Top new sign on Macclesfield Road and below the old sign on The Hough.
