East Riding Council leader Councillor Steve Parnaby planted a tree in the town centre and pupils from Beverley Minster Primary School buried a time capsule to mark the occasion.

The major repaving scheme from Toll Gavel to Wednesday Market has been carried out in partnership by East Riding Council’s civil engineering major projects team and Halls Construction special projects team, with the aim of improving the overall environment and making the town centre more attractive.

Coun Parnaby said: “The work has hugely improved the pedestrian heart of Beverley and added to the vitality and attraction of the historic town centre.

"The council has worked very closely with local interest groups, including the traders, and we have honoured our commitment to business continuity with every trader’s premises remaining open during the work.

“However, there has inevitably been some disruption and inconvenience and I thank the traders and residents for their forebearance.”

Gail Cahill, senior project manager, said: “The project team’s hard work over the past year has paid off.

“We are extremely pleased with the results, given the constraints in delivering a scheme of this scale in such a confined and busy environment.”

The resurfacing work covers an area of over 5,000 square metres along narrow pedestrian areas which have delivery access.

The scheme has a complex specification to ensure that the surface is robust enough to cater for the volume of commercial vehicles.

The work included taking up the existing surface materials, reconstructing the foundation, surfacing, alterations to the drainage system and renewing underground telecom services for the whole length of the scheme.

In Wednesday Market, foundations have been laid for a Christmas tree and underground power supply facilities have also been installed for the market and future events.

The layouts of surface materials have been designed following shared space concepts and national guidance to create a public area in which pedestrians are seen as priority.

East Riding Council and Halls Construction have been praised by British Cycling for their co-operation in ensuring the success of the National Circuit Race Championships held in August.

Michael Boyle, a board member of British Cycling Yorkshire, who is also vice chairman of the Beverley Renaissance Partnership, said: “The championship race took place whilst resurfacing in Wednesday Market was ongoing.

“However, both Halls Construction and East Riding of Yorkshire Council pulled out all the stops to ensure a safe route for the riders.

“Such enthusiastic support was much appreciated.”