Councillor's delight as 'draconian' Bridgnorth High Street parking removal plans axed
A councillor has expressed his delight at the withdrawal of "draconian" Covid-19 measures set to be introduced in Bridgnorth High Street.
Christian Lea said it was "imperative" Shropshire Council axed plans to remove parking from the town centre, to maximise trade for shops and ensure vulnerable people could park close to the service they need.
Councillor Lea, who represents Bridgnorth East and Astley Abbotts on the county authority, attended a meeting with civic leaders and council members discussing proposals to make Bridgnorth safe to visit when non-essential shops reopen on Monday.
Following the discussions, Shropshire Council outlined its plans to remove parking from High Street and reassign bays as loading, disabled or pedestrian spaces only from June 8.
But after concern raised by numerous High Street businesses and councillors from the meeting, who said the proposals had not been agreed, Shropshire Council withdrew its initial plans.
New proposals now show the only change being the bus stop repositioned towards Northgate and the bus bay to be pedestrian only, allowing people to socially distance while queuing outside shops.
Councillor Lea said: "I was very concerned all the parking was going to be lost from our High Street.
"With the shops having been shut for the best part of three months, it is imperative that Shropshire Council does not make life difficult for local shopkeepers by imposing such draconian parking measures.
"Local shopkeepers need all the support they can get and many told me that they were finding trading conditions difficult before the lockdown.
"Bridgnorth has a higher than average number of elderly people who rely on the limited waiting spaces in High Street to be able to access the shops and if this parking was to be removed, it would put many of them off from going into town.
"I'm very pleased the plans have been withdrawn and parking will remain."
The work to reposition the bus stop is set to be carried out this weekend, followed by monitoring and safety checks.
