A DECISION on a proposal to temporarily make King Street in the town centre “access only” has been postponed by Frome Town Council.
Town councillors made the decision to postpone after a consultation of 100 people – consisting of residents and businesses in King Street, Eagle Lane and Church Street – returned an “inconclusive” and “meaningless” result.
Of the 100 people contacted, 25 people responded, with 15 against the proposal to make King Street “access only”, and 10 in favour.
At a recent ‘Town Matters’ meeting it was recommended to councillors that they follow the outcome of the consultation and vote in favour of not reinstating the temporary closure of King Street to through traffic.
However, after debate, a majority of councillors voted in favour of instead conducting a wider consultation, involving the whole community.
“This is a change that affects everyone who uses the town,” said cllr Scott Ward who proposed the amendment.
In agreement, cllr Anne Hills added that a more “holistic” approach was needed to explore what the impact of an “access only” King Street could have on the rest of the town. “This could shift the problem elsewhere,” said cllr Hills.
At the meeting, cllr Paul Horton expressed his “disappointment” that the town council was not showing “leadership” and was not observing its own “pro-cycling and walking” policies by making King Street “access only”.
He described the King Street closure as an “easy win” for the council and highlighted that the council had received “endless feedback” from residents that they want “better walking and cycling routes”.
In support of cllr Horton, cllr Rob Collett proposed that they take a vote on reinstating the temporary closure – however, his proposal was not voted on as councillors had already accepted the proposal to carry out another consultation.
King Street, which connects with the Market Place and Eagle Lane/Church Street, was temporarily made “access only” this year when the Market Place was closed for works through the summer.
The restriction was lifted at the beginning of October to encourage the town centre to return to “normal” after the period of disruption. However, after some councillors expressed concern about the safety of pedestrians and cyclists on King Street, and the difficulty to observe social distancing because of the narrow pavements, the town council agreed to consult on the reinstatement of the “access only” arrangement.
