WORK to install new gates and lighting at the rail arches at Forster Square Station is due to be completed before the end of the year.

The work to seal off the arches, which have been used by rough sleepers in recent years, was announced earlier this year.

It would be funded by Network Rail, which owns the arches, with work carried out by Bradford Council.

Three-metre-high decorated panels would be installed over each of the 10 archways, with new lighting installed inside.

The project has caused controversy, with many including homeless charities criticising the Council for closing off an area used for shelter by many vulnerable people.

Earlier this Summer, the Council defended the decision, with a statement from the Council Executive saying: “As a society we simply should not tolerate having our fellow citizens living in arches without water and sanitary facilities.”

Bradford Council had said around 10 people regularly use the arches, but charity Homeless not Helpless estimated around 30 people had been sleeping in the arches at certain points this Summer.

The Council said its Homeless Outreach Team visited the arches on a daily basis to offer support, and that in the past 12 months the authority has provided accommodation for over 220 people who had been living on the streets.

A recent report by West Yorkshire Fire Service that was discussed by Councillors last week had described the arches as a “hotspot” for fires, with fires lit by the homeless for warmth spreading out of control or being left unattended.

The arches were closed off with temporary fencing in August, but there has so far been no sign of the new gates, despite statements earlier this year that they would be in place by 2025.

The Telegraph & Argus asked both Network Rail and Bradford Council for an update on the project.

A Network Rail spokesperson said: “We are working in partnership with Bradford Council to confirm a start date to improve the area near the station to make it safer for passengers and the local community. We look forward to installing new gates and lighting ahead of City of Culture which is planned for completion this year.”

A Bradford Council spokesperson said: “A start date is yet to be confirmed but the planned work to enhance the area near Forster Square railway station with gates and new lighting is due to be completed this year.”