Renfrew street to be named after Barnwell brothers

The end of Wright Street will be renamed Barnwell Street as Renfrewshire Council puts bollards in place near the White Cart Water.

Wright Street is to be stopped up when a new bridge spanning the river opens later this year as part of the Glasgow Airport Investment Area project.

The bridge will offer cyclists, pedestrians and vehicles a connection across the waterway from the airport and the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) to Westway Park and businesses at the river end of Wright Street.

The bollards will prevent vehicles, such as trucks which are accessing these premises, from driving through residential streets or using these as through roads to Westway Park and other businesses.

Council chiefs plan to rename this end section to avoid such vehicles keying in the address of commercial premises into their sat navs and finding themselves stuck on the residential side of the bollards.    

A spokesman for Renfrewshire Council told The Gazette: “We are advertising a proposed change of street name for the west-most section of Wright Street, Renfrew.

“The proposed Barnwell Street would extend from the top of Arran Avenue to the stopping up point and changing the street name will avoid confusion for people looking to access commercial premises west of where the road will be stopped up.”

The proposed name is a nod to Harold and Frank Barnwell – brothers and aviation pioneers who built the first successful powered aircraft made in Scotland.

The innovative pair reached an altitude of 13 feet as they travelled 80 yards over fields near the Wallace Monument, in Stirling, in 1909.

“It was felt this is fitting as the road and bridge will provide a connection for commercial vehicles into Scotland’s manufacturing innovation district AMIDS, home to cutting-edge manufacturing research and development, and as it is located next to Glasgow Airport,” the spokesman added.