Residents to get a say in traffic plan

4:31pm Sunday 7th September 2008

Comments (17)   Have your say »

THOUSANDS of leaflets will be sent to residents in Bradford on Avon and nearby villages next week as part of a major consultation exercise that could transform the traffic system.

The explanatory leaflet, which includes a questionnaire and invitation for ideas, will be sent to 6,250 households in Holt, Limpley Stoke, Monkton Farleigh, South Wraxall, Westwood, Winsley and Bradford.

The idea behind the consultation process is to address the impact of motor vehicles on pedestrians and other road users, on air quality, and on the structure of buildings.

The responses will inform a two-day intensive workshop, to be held in mid-November.

Organiser Gerald Milward-Oliver said: "Over the years, you'll probably find that everyone living in the area has come up with an answer to what they believe is wrong with traffic in the town.

"Some people insist on a bypass, but at what environmental cost and how would it be financed? Some want traffic to be speeded up through town so they can get to where they're going faster. Some want traffic removed from the town centre altogether.

"Climate change and the cost of fuel is making people everywhere think about alternatives to the car - whether bicycle, bus, train or on foot.

"But here in the area of Bradford on Avon, we have another reason for pausing and thinking about our relationship with the motor car, particularly in the town centre."

Organisers hope that they will receive a deluge of constructive suggestions over the next six weeks, which will form the foundation for the workshop that takes place in November.

The consultation and workshops will be part-funded by the town council and the BoA Community Area Partnership, as well as being supported by numerous bodies such as Wiltshire County Council and The Bradford on Avon Preservation Trust.

The two-day workshop will be co-chaired by Ben Bolgar, design director of The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, and Andrew Cameron, director of urban design at WSP Group and co-author of Manual for Streets', a Government technical guidance document on the sustainable use of public space.

The chairman of Climate Friendly Bradford, Richard Craft, said: "What we are hoping is that the scheme will make the centre of BoA much more friendly for people. We still want to accommodate the traffic but in a way so that the town is not dominated by it.

"I'm very optimistic about the scheme. It will bring lots of groups together that haven't always seen eye to eye on the solutions."