High Street car ban plan must go much further

On a sample traffic count, from 9am to 10am on a Friday, we found there were 366 private cars, 137 delivery vehicles and vans, 47 police cars/taxis/Royal Mail vans, 13 motor bikes and six cyclists.

Traffic clogged up and backed up at the traffic lights four times during the hour. This would get worse if cars and delivery vehicles were still permitted to use the High Street until 10am.

We fully support the ban on cars turning right at the bottom of the High Street into congested Queen Street. We do not support the exclusion of disabled parking in the High Street.

We oppose the ridiculous suggestion Stanwell Street could be a bus interchange accessed from Southway.

Bus access must be permanently maintained along Osborne Street from St Botolph’s Street. The current Queen Street bus station must continue until a suitable new bus station has been built.

The only suitable central site large enough for a bus/coach interchange with all the necessary facilities is the council-owned Britannia car park.

We also oppose the £3.4million counter productive park and ride on a greenfield site three miles out of the town centre, through the congested Northern Approaches. It will discourage people from taking a bus or rail journey to the town centre, while also taking custom from the town car parks – reducing the council’s income.

We oppose the proposed Crouch Street Cycle Route.

It is a dangerous and unnecessary route and creates conflict between cyclists and pedestrians, including shoppers and crowds of students at the bottom of Rawstorn Road and in the underpass.

The national cycle route 1, which was not shown on the leaflet, is a much safer cycle route from Lexden Road and Crouch Street West, along Rawstorn Road and across the bridge to the Mercury Theatre.

Paula Whitney
Colchester Friends

of the Earth