WORKS to repair the bus carriageway at Bradford Interchange will last for 18 months.

The £8.5 million scheme to repair the carriageway used by buses entering and exiting the station was first proposed over two years ago, and finally began on Monday.

West Yorkshire Combined Authority, which is behind the work, said it aims to keep disruptions to a minimum during the lengthy repair period.

However, bus users have been advised to check before they travel as there will be changes to bus stalls over the period.

Originally the work to replace the surface was budgeted at £2m, but last year it was revealed that this has spiralled to £8.5m.

It is being funded by the Local Transport Plan programme.

At a recent meeting of the Combined Authority, officers said the existing carriageways were “deteriorating” and the work would include waterproofing and resurfacing large sections of the station.

What would be a fairly straightforward project is made more difficult by the fact that the bus station surface lies above a car park and retail units - including a bingo hall.

At the meeting of the Bradford District subcommittee, officers were asked whether there was a particular problem with the carriageway – as there had been multiple previous repair schemes.

Dave Pearson, head of transport at the Combined Authority, said this work would be a much more permanent project, referring to previous work on the carriageway as "patching."

He added: "The structure is sound, we've had structural engineers do a lot of work on this.

"It requires extensive work to repair, but it will give the Interchange a much longer life span.”

As the work started this week, the Combined Authority said the carriageway work is expected to take 18 months to complete.

They added: “The resurfacing work will be split into a number of phases to ensure the Interchange is able to operate throughout the duration of the works.

“The works are part of a maintenance scheme that will undertake the full resurfacing of the bus carriageway at Bradford Interchange, including access to/from Bridge Street and Nelson Street.

“These works will improve the efficiency of the Interchange and reduce overall maintenance costs.”

Another major development next to the Interchange is expected to begin next month. The NCP car park on Hall Ings, owned by Bradford Council, will be demolished as part of a multimillion pound scheme to create a new Hall Ings entrance to the Interchange.