Economy

Complaints about gridlock caused by work to install bus lanes on a city centre road have prompted a council to respond.

Salford Council began work on Chapel Street in April with a finish date of April 2026 but a road closure which came into effect on 5 May has caused long tailbacks.

Chapel Street has been shut westbound from Blackfriars Road to New Bailey Street with some motorists reporting "hour-long queues" and residents saying they have "never seen it like this before".

A council spokesperson said that the "one-way closure on Chapel Street represents the best solution currently available to deliver the works safely and efficiently".

'Extensive excavations'

They said the council sought to balance the needs of local residents and businesses while maintaining the operation of public transport and general traffic flow.

When asked by the Local Democracy Reporting Service why the works were set to take a year, lead member for planning, transport and sustainable development Mike McCusker said "extensive excavations" were needed to accommodate the work required.

"The contractor has to carry these works out safely for the workforce and the public whilst maintaining access for buses, residents, businesses and general traffic in the city centre where there is very limited space and high congestion," he said.

The work also includes the installation of more pedestrian areas and extra room for buses.

Commuter Helen Marsh said on social media that it took her "one-and-a-half hours to do a 13-mile journey from Leigh into Manchester [on] Thursday morning" using the A6.

"It was gridlocked, cars blocking junctions because the lights turn before you can move, horns beeping everywhere," she added.

She said it was putting people off travelling into the city centre.

After the first week of the closure Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said it had spoken to Salford Council to see if any tweaks could be made.

"We met with Salford Council and other key partners… to investigate the causes of the disruption in more detail and are exploring options to ease the build-up of traffic along Chapel Street going forward, including potential changes to traffic light sequencing at the junction of Blackfriars Street," a TfGM spokesperson said.

A West Yorkshire Police staff member has been charged with making indecent images of children and trying to arrange sexual activity with a child.

Christopher Thompson, 31, who works in regional scientific support services, has been suspended from duty, police said.

He is accused of two counts of making indecent photographs of a child and one count of sending communication conveying a threatening message.

He is also charged with attempting to arrange commission of a child sex offence. Thompson is due to appear at Leeds Magistrates' Court on Thursday.

West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds

A Black Country zoo has welcomed two baby reindeer to their herd.

Dudley Zoo and Castle posted about the little arrivals on Facebook on Monday.

The zoo said mum Sunflower gave birth to a boy, while Jasmine gave birth to a girl, and all are doing well.

Although not currently endangered, the species has a IUCN Red List status of vulnerable.

Did you know

• Reindeer can run at speeds of up to 75 kilometres per hour
• They are the only mammals able to see ultraviolet light. This is thought to help them see better in their white, featureless winter world
• They are known as reindeer in Europe, but their North American name is caribou

Concerns have been raised over the poor state of a running track which an athletics club says is putting some young athletes at risk of injury.

The athletics club at the Prince of Wales Stadium in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, is calling on Cheltenham Borough Council to invest in the site.

A total of 24 potential licensed competitions have not been held there since it failed the TrackMark accreditation test by England Athletics in 2022.

The council said it does not currently have a capital fund set aside to replace the track – which was estimated to cost £489,000 in October 2024.

Jane Woolley is team manager for the under 17s and under 20s at the Cheltenham and County Harriers Athletics team.

At a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, she told councillors: "I am severely disappointed to see their training facilities are still in poor condition, contributing to some injuries our athletes are suffering.

"Our club is producing some national standard junior athletes, and spends in excess of £50,000 per year for hiring the training facility which is currently unfit for purpose, but there is no alternative."

'Remains open'

Finance and assets cabinet member Peter Jeffries said he recognised both Leisure at Cheltenham and the Prince of Wales were ageing facilities.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the authority has recently commissioned an assessment of the sites and a financial appraisal.

He added the track was last refurbished in 2012, at which time the track surface was re-topped with a 4mm layer of 'crumb', designed to extend the life of the track.

Councillor Izaac Tailford said: "Whilst we acknowledge that the track does not currently meet the UK Athletics competition standard, it remains open and accessible to users, meets all relevant health and safety requirements, and continues to provide an affordable entry to athletes."

About 350 staff at the University of Edinburgh have accepted voluntary redundancy as part of a cost-saving effort.

In a letter to staff, principal Sir Peter Mathieson also confirmed academic promotions would be frozen for the 2025-26 period.

The university has claimed it needs to reduce costs by about £140m, but unions have called it a "manufactured crisis".

A ballot asking whether staff would consider going on strike is running until 20 May.

Prof Mathieson previously said there had to be a "radical re-wiring" of the way the university operates, suggesting the number and variety of courses could be cut.

He has previously refused to rule out the potential for compulsory redundancies.

In a statement, he said the 350 voluntary redundancies would save about £18m, with formal confirmation due on 30 April.

Conservationists are hoping to learn about a group of bottlenose dolphins that make their home in Welsh waters – by studying their poo.

About 200 bottlenose dolphins are said to live in and around Cardigan Bay and, although they have been studied for several years, experts want to learn more about their relationships, breeding potential and movement patterns.

Analysis of samples will help them to understand what they have been feeding on and where and help build individual profiles for each dolphin.

They will also attempt to match the samples with photo identification records of the dolphins gathered on camera by members of the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales.

An al-Qaeda linked group says it carried out a major attack on the Malian town of Boulikessi and the seizure of an army base there.

More than 30 soldiers were killed in Sunday's attack, according to sources quoted by the news agency Reuters, however that figure has not been confirmed by the authorities.

On Monday the same group, Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), said it targeted the military in the historic city of Timbuktu, with residents reporting hearing gunfire and explosions.

Mali's army said in a statement late on Monday that it had repelled an "infiltration attempt by terrorist fighters" in Timbuktu, "neutralising" 14 militants and arresting 31 suspects.

It added that weapons, vehicles and other items were seized, but did not name the group responsible for the attack. The army said search operations across Timbuktu were ongoing.

In an earlier statement, the army said it "reacted vigorously" to Sunday's attack, before "withdrawing" – suggesting a tactical retreat.

"Many men fought, some until their last breath, to defend the Malian nation," the statement added.

An unnamed local source told Reuters that JNIM had left many casualties and "cleared the camp".

Unverified video footage showed dozens of militants storming the base, including one which captured them stepping on bodies, according to Reuters.

In Monday's attack, JNIM said its fighters had attacked a military airport and Russian mercenaries.

Military and security sources told the AFP news agency they were "fighting back", but that the militants were "everywhere in the city".

A local official said the attackers had arrived "with a vehicle packed with explosives" that detonated close to the army camp.

Timbuktu, a UN World Heritage Site, was captured by Islamist militants in 2012 before they were driven out, but has once more been under siege in recent years.

The attacks, the latest sign of collapsing security in Mali and the wider Sahel region, came after the United States Africa Command warned about growing efforts by various different Islamist militant groups which operate in the Sahel to gain access to West Africa's coastline.

During a press conference on Friday, the commander of United States Africa Command (Africom), Gen Michael Langley, described recent attacks in Nigeria, the wider Sahel, and the Lake Chad Basin as deeply troubling, warning that the groups' access to the coast would significantly boost their capacity for smuggling and arms trafficking.

It is thought that more than 400 soldiers have been killed by militants since the beginning of last month in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, Reuters reports.

More BBC stories about the Sahel region:

• Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso to form joint force to fight jihadists
• The region with more 'terror deaths' than rest of world combined
• 'I thought I would die' – freed captive tells BBC of life in West African jihadist base