|
Details of town centre improvements have been refined following comments received at the public exhibition in June 2007.
Feedback results (Consultation)
Feedback results (Analysis)
Background
The construction of Westbury Bypass would remove heavy through traffic that severs the town centre community providing the opportunity to make the town centre area more accessible, especially to non-car users, and create a healthy and vibrant commercial centre that is easy to get to, pleasant to visit and the 'hub' of community life.
 The proposals for the town centre include extensive measures to improve conditions for pedestrians, cyclists and users of public transport. With the town centre less dominated by road traffic conditions can be improved for pedestrians by reallocating 'freed' road space to create pedestrian friendly areas. This would include the widening footways and providing pedestrianised areas and safe crossings, so that visitors and shoppers could move freely and easily within the central area.
The intention would be to make the town centre more attractive to visit and shop in, which in turn would help promote economic activity and sustain local businesses.
A comprehensive cycle network, which already has a number of links in place, would be developed. The primary aim of the network would be to provide safe routes to schools, the town centre and other community facilities, such as the rail station and leisure centre. The network would generally make use of lightly trafficked residential streets, although some key links would be provided by widening existing footways and providing new off-road cycleways.
These may include entrance features, narrowings, speed tables and pedestrian crossings to create pedestrian friendly areas. Traffic calming measures are also considered on through routes in residential areas in order to discourage traffic from 'rat-running' and using these roads.
In partnership with the Town Council and West Wiltshire District Council the Market Place was recently improved. Following this successful scheme , Maristow Street and the High Street/Edward Street are also being considered for improvement.
Exhibition
Around 1000 people attended a public exhibition at the Laverton Institute in Westbury on 28-30 June 2007. See below for the exhibition boards on the bypass, the town centre improvements, the Market Place improvements and the draft orders for land purchase.
Click on the picture to view a larger version.
|
