Partial re-opening date for Glasgow's George Square revealed

The western section of Glasgow’s iconic public space will open to the public as part of the next phase of its ongoing transformation project, which has been under development since May last year.

A public celebration is planned for the first weekend of September, with traffic-free roads, street play, and family-friendly events to mark the occasion.

Councillor Susan Aitken, leader of Glasgow City Council, said: "It has been fantastic to see the new Square start to emerge – and we want to welcome people back and let them see what this space is going to look like as soon as we can.

"This will be a weekend where people can walk, play, and start to get to know their new square, as the biggest section yet reopens."

The improvements are part of a phased reopening that began in June, with the north carriageway already back in use.

The Queen Street side is next in line to open.

Further sections will continue to be opened to the public as it is safe to do so - with the final fences expected to be removed by the end of October.

Councillor Aitken said: "People are going to see a lot of progress over the weeks ahead – with statues returning next month, as well a lot of work on paving and planting.

"Rather than keeping the entire site closed until every element is complete, we will continue reopening sections in phases – allowing Glaswegians and visitors to start enjoying the new spaces as they are finished and ahead of the full reopening in October."

Originally, the council had hoped to officially reopen the square in early September, but the timeline was pushed back after uncharted underground pipes and cables were discovered, causing unexpected delays.

David McEwan, divisional director for property, city deal and major projects at Glasgow City Council, said: "As with any project of this scale – and in the heart of a historic city centre – there are complexities which can arise in delivery which construction teams need to respond to and work through.

"Contractors have encountered various challenges, including the discovery of underground pipes, cables, and other infrastructure that were not identified in any existing records – all of which required additional work to address."

While the new completion date is later than planned, the council’s focus remains on reopening as much of the square as possible– as soon as it is safe to do so.

Currently, footways on all four sides of the square are nearly finished, and the north carriageway reopened to traffic on June 26.

One of the most anticipated parts of the project is the return of the square’s 11 bronze statues, scheduled for early August.

Restoration work on the Sir Walter Scott Monument is nearly complete.

Granite paving work is underway on the western side.

It will pause for two weeks to allow the statues to be safely relocated onto their plinths.

Progress is also being made on the eastern side and around the Cenotaph, where stone repairs are ongoing ahead of a final cleaning.