A court hearing has brought plans to install three linked through-traffic restriction trials in Gay Street, Catharine Place and Winifred’s Lane to a halt.
Work on the scheme, being put in under an Experimental Traffic Regulation Order, was due to start on Monday 5 August and the trials were planned to run for a minimum of six months.
The scheme has been paused pending legal proceedings following an application for an injunction brought by a group of B&NES residents.
A court hearing is listed for Thursday August 8 for a judge to either lift the suspension or to decide if the suspension continues pending a judicial review hearing.
Councillor Manda Rigby, Cabinet Member for Highways, said: “Our immediate priority is to make people aware that the scheme is paused until the outcome of next week’s hearing. We will be writing to let residents know and encourage people to check our Liveable Neighbourhoods webpage for updates.”
Planned highways work to improve traffic signal operation in George Street, involving the installation of a new above ground detector will continue to be undertaken on 6 to 7 August. As a result:
- On 6-7 August, there will be no vehicle access (at all) into the upper stretch of Gay Street from its junction with George Street . Site advisors will be on hand to help with vehicle access for blue badge holders. Please call or email us in advance if you require support.
- On 6-7 August we will temporarily suspend all parking on Gay Street. Parking restriction signs will be in place from 30 July. Please remove any parked vehicles from the area before 7am on Tuesday 6 August.
- The road closure will be lifted as soon as is reasonably practicable on completion of the works.
For updates from 8 August go to www.bathnes.gov.uk/lansdownetro
We engaged with a motley demo by a bunch of people last year. When we quizzed them they admitted they didn’t even live in the area. The 20 mph limit has, at last, brought a decrease in accidents and pollution. I’m asthmatic – until we moved to Bath 8 years ago I would say I didn’t suffer from it. The moment we moved here my asthma got worse. Crossing the A4 meant dicing with death and exiting the allotments on Lower Common East amounted to Russian Roulette because the average speed of cars was 40 mph. We’re happy to put up with re-routing if it helps other residents. What’s wrong with these protesters?
The protestors are just weird. The government’s own review of Low Traffic Neighbourhoods referenced a study that found removing through traffic off unclassified roads made them twice as safe for all road users (over six times safer for pedestrians) while not increasing danger on boundary roads.
The main road pollution argument doesn’t hold up much water because none of the weirdos are demanding that Bath adopt Bristol’s Clean Air Zone charging (old petrol/diesel cars), congestion charging, or that wood burning stoves should be banned in the city.
We moved out of Bath to Timsbury for many reasons but one thing we did notice is that my wife’s asthma vanished overnight.
Judicial reviews don’t come cheap. I wonder who’s funding this one.
Yes indeed – who’s paying for all this? not the local residents for sure. I’m sure thethe objectors will be keeping an eye on this conversation so let’s have a clear answer from them – unless they prefer to keep their funding in the shadows – which tells its own story!