No sooner were they put in place than they were dug up again!

A number of newly-installed stone setts in Bradford city centre have been “lifted” by workmen.

Tyrrel Street, Hustlergate and Bank Street have been resurfaced with natural stone paving over the last year as part of Bradford Council’s £1.6 million Heritage Streets Project.

This week, people walking along Tyrrel Street, near the Co-operative Bank, were surprised to see more work being carried out so soon after the paving stones had been laid.

Engineers said it had been necessary to lift some of the setts to allow an electricity company to repair a fault with an underground cable that had caused a power cut at nearby properties.

The Council admitted it was a “frustrating” situation, but pledged to relay the setts and flags to achieve the same high-quality finish.

One passer-by, who did not wish to be named, said: “For some reason, they looked as though they were digging up those really nice stone slabs that have been put down. It seems a bit strange to spend all that money, then to undo the hard work.”

Andy Fisher, the Council’s senior engineer, said: “There was an underground electrical cable fault which left some properties around Aldermanbury and Sunbridge Road without power.

“Engineers from electrical company YEDL had to carry out emergency works to dig up part of the area and repair the cable which involved lifting some of the recently laid stone setts and flags in Tyrrel Street and Ivegate.

“Our contractors will be relaying the setts and flags when the electrical work is completed to ensure the same high standard of finish.

“It’s frustrating but there’s nothing we can do when emergency works are necessary.”

The public realm work to help start the regeneration of Tyrrel Street, Bank Street and Hustlergate, is also aimed at being a catalyst for the wider improvement of Bradford’s retail quarter.

The need for high-quality public realm as a spearhead for regeneration was set out in Will Alsop’s city centre masterplan seven years ago.

A Council spokesman said the cost of the work was not yet known as it had not been completed but YEDL was picking up the bill.