THE town centre will become a no-go zone for motorists on the day the Olympic Torch comes to Bolton.

Bolton Council has announced road clo- sures for the forthcom- ing Olympic Torch Relay and will close off large swathes of the town centre to allow preparations to take place for the evening celebration event on May 31.

Spa Road, where the concert will take place, will be closed for the whole of May 31, while many other town centre roads will be shut off between noon and midnight.

Parts of Le Mans Crescent, Howell Croft North and South, Victoria Square, Blackhorse Street and Ashburn- er Street will be closed, along with sections of other roads, including Mayor Street, College Way, Deane Road, Moor Lane and White Lion Brow.

Deane Road, Moor Lane, Marsden Road and St George’s Road will also be closed in part between 3pm and midnight.

The Olympic Torch will arrive in Bolton via Westhoughton at 5.30pm.

It will make its way into the town centre to Victoria Square, before con- tinuing on to the Spa Road playing fields in Queens Park, where the evening celebration concert will take place.

Eight thousand res- idents have snapped up free tickets to see chart toppers The Wombats performBolton’s Torch concert.

Olympic celebration X Factor star Laura White will also take to the stage, following performances the Sharples from and Westhoughton School samba band, the Octa- gon Theatre, and the Sunshine Street Dancers.

A council spokesman said: “We’re delighted so many people will be celebrating this his- toric occasion.”

The Olympic Flame was handed over to London 2012 officials on Thursday.

David Beckham was at the ancient Pana- thenaic Stadium in Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, to help collect the flame and bring it back home. The torch touched down in Corn- wall yesterday to begin its 70-day jour- ney around the UK.