A £4m scheme to make Brentwood more attractive to shoppers is moving into top gear.

County council and borough council chiefs are already planning meetings and talks as they move from an outline concept to detailed proposals.

Last week county highways chief Cllr Rodney Bass ended months of uncertainty when he opted for Option 1 traffic calming and vetoed pedestrianisation - a decision which accorded with the wishes of Brentwood Council.

Option 1 is described in material from the public exhibition as traffic calming in the High Street and the of moving traffic to William Hunter Way.

Full details of the project will emerge during the design process which is now underway.

Designers and engineers will use traffic calming ideas floated during the consultation as a starting point for discussions but they may not be adopted as part of the final scheme due to go-ahead in 2006.

Cllr Bass has highlighted seven principal features of the scheme:

A redesign of the street scene with high quality finishes

A new Kings Road to High Street link road (in the vicinity of Bennetts)

An enlarged roundabout at the Ongar Road and William Hunter Way junction

Additional and upgraded walkways between the High Street and William Hunter Way

Changes to William Hunter Way's traffic calming and pedestrian crossings

A new mini-roundabout at the Weald Road-Western Road junction

Traffic calming on some local roads

There will be no changes to the Wilson's Corner junction, but further consideration will be given to reducing queues on Ongar Road between William Hunter Way and the High Street plus cutting congestion around the William Hunter Way car parks.

Published Friday July 30, 2004

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