Frome’s debut Green Breather Day replaces cars with trees

FROME’S town centre was closed to traffic for one day last week, as Frome Town Council launched its ‘Green Breather Day’ initiative. 

The project aims to cut air pollution and use the town centre in innovative ways to encourage people to explore it – for the first ‘Green Breather Day’, the Market Place was ‘flooded’ with trees to create a ‘pop-up forest’. 

The town council reports, “Frome’s town centre took on a brand-new look at the weekend as greenery flooded the Market Place. With various species of trees spread out alongside straw bales, tables and chairs, the makeshift pop-up forest saw the town become a relaxing hotspot to celebrate pedestrians and environmentally friendly travel.  

“To mark the first Green Breather Day, people in Frome were treated to wander among the flora and take in a Market Place popping with bright green and glowing red colour. Chestnut, oak, hazel, bay trees and more, replaced the usual throng of cars that stream through the centre, seeing the town become a new safe haven that even saw the arrival of bees.” 

Cllr Fiona Barrows said, “It was amazing to spend a day just simply enjoying the town centre space, without the bustle of cars streaming down the middle. We all got to see Frome in a different light and I’m excited to see how people adjust to having a town centre designed for them, rather than their vehicles, as the Green Breather Day project continues later in the summer.” 

‘Gridlock’ 

However, there was a mixed response online to the project. Whilst some residents praised the initiative, explaining that it created a ‘sociable atmosphere’ that encouraged people to stop and chat; others complained that the road closure created ‘gridlock’ on other roads, having a negative impact on the air quality outside the town centre. There was also confusion about accessing the Cattle Market car park, with some drivers assuming that access to the car park was also closed.

Impact on town 

centre businesses

Some town centre businesses also complained that the road closure impacted their trade – with some reporting that they were ‘desperately quiet’ in the afternoon. 

The Green Breather Days are a series of Saturdays across the summer where the town centre is given over to pedestrians and buses. The council is measuring the impact of this, working with Tech Shed to measure air pollution levels in the closure zone and along key diversion routes. 

Anyone with any feedback on the event is welcome to get in touch with the town council. 

The Green Breather Days will take place once a month until September. The next event will be on Saturday 18th June.  

To find out more, head to www.frometowncouncil.gov.uk/green-breather-days