Salisbury's MP calls for People Friendly Scheme to be suspended
John Glen wants the controversial project put on hold during the coronavirus pandemic.
Last updated 13th Nov 2020
The experimental scheme, which came into force on October 21st, sees most traffic banned from the city centre in a bid to prioritise the area for pedestrians and cyclists.
Whilst John Glen has commended Wiltshire Council for its "bold ambition" he says the timing is not right:
"I have always supported the aspiration to boost cycling and walking in Salisbury. Improving air quality and making the city a healthier place to live in and visit should be a priority for us. That is why I backed the attempt by Wiltshire Council to introduce an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) and Low Traffic Zone (LTZ) to help achieve these objectives. I commend them for their bold ambition in this area."
"But the pandemic this year and now the second lockdown mean that traffic levels nationally remain significantly lower than normal. This creates huge challenges for an experimental scheme such as has been introduced in Salisbury. It’s impossible to accurately measure the impact of the scheme on traffic on the A36 or footfall levels in the city centre when our normal baseline has disappeared."
PLEA TO HALT SCHEME
John has now written to the leader of Wiltshire Council asking for the scheme to be suspended until next summer.
"It should not be reintroduced until traffic and footfall levels have returned to normal levels and we can accurately measure its impact. It is also important that a much wider consultation takes place before a new scheme is introduced."
CONCERNED RESIDENTS
The scheme has come under fire from residents and traders in the city and John says more work to find out the issues is needed.
"I have received a large amount of correspondence from constituents who are concerned about the current project and argue that the interests of motorists and businesses outside the city centre have been ignored. Making sure these voices are included in a future consultation will be important in helping shape a scheme that enjoys wider support from local residents. "
Last week Bridget Wayman who is in charge of highways at Wiltshire Council urged people to give the scheme a chance
"The scheme has only been in place for a couple of weeks and will take some getting used to, but I really hope that people will embrace the changes and recognise that it is intended to help promote the city as an attractive low traffic, low-polluting and welcoming place for shoppers, visitors and tourists to spend their time and money."
BUSINESS VIEW
With the scheme being so controversial, the Salisbury BID are now asking businesses owners to complete a survey about it.
It asks them what the impact has been like so far and how they expect their business to be affected in the long term.
They can fill it out by clicking here.