New traffic restrictions to tackle city centre “Wacky Races” roads

New traffic restrictions will be introduced on Wrexham’s city centre roads after they were described as being like “Wacky Races”.

Senior councillors said urgent action was needed to improve safety in the main shopping area after it was claimed drivers had been seen speeding down the High Street at up to 70mph.

Members of Wrexham Council’s executive board met today (Tuesday, 17 September) to discuss a raft of measures aimed at protecting visitors, including the introduction of one-way traffic on some roads.

Regeneration work is currently being carried out which will result in the city’s High Street and surrounding areas being pedestrianised following the installation of rising bollards.

Other key roads will also be closed to traffic between 11.30am and 6am in a bid to create a “cafe culture” in the city.

Concerns were raised by some business owners about the impact the changes would have on deliveries, as well as the loss of disabled parking bays on the High Street.

However, the ruling independent/Conservative coalition backed the introduction of a new single TRO (Traffic Regulation Order) to cover the entire area after the council’s deputy leader said Wrexham needed to “act like a city”.

TRO’s are usually published in the back of declining circulation newspapers (eg. Leader, Wrexham edition now at just 1,860 circulation average per issue) a move that has been perpetuated by Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Conservatives who joined forces in the Senedd to ensure that all-but-subsidy remained for declining legacy print media. More: Six out of ten Newsquest newspapers in Wales would have been loss making last year without public notice revenue / “It is not for local authorities to fund local or national print media”, says Senedd committee

In yesterday’s Executive Board meeting Cllr David A Bithell (Ind) said: “We can’t have Wacky Races coming into the city like has been happening, putting public safety at jeopardy.

“I fully support the traffic order that we’ve got that’s being implemented.

“We do need to make sure that it works, and we do need to make sure that the businesses get the full benefit from the proposal.

“But let’s put this into perspective because we’ve got significant investment into the city centre that we haven’t had for a number of years.

“Things are changing and we’re not a town anymore – we’re a city. We have to act like a city, and we have to change the way that we do things.”

The disruption caused by work on the city’s High Street has previously been criticised by businesses, who say it has had a negative impact on trade.

It was also claimed the new measures could prevent disabled people from accessing St Giles’ Parish Church.

Plaid Cymru councillor Andy Gallanders, who owns a craft beer bar in the city centre, told the meeting: “My concern is regarding how many businesses that will be affected by the new traffic order actually know that it has progressed to this stage.

“The current work on the High Street, which we all know will be amazing once completed, has shown an issue with communication between the council and businesses.

“My concern is that if businesses are not permit holders, this will really restrict the window for deliveries.”

Cllr Phil Wynn, lead member for education, said he supported the measures and believed they would improve pedestrian safety.

He made his comments despite expressing concerns that it could have a negative impact on the city’s night-time economy if taxis are unable to get close to bars and pubs.

Cllr Nigel Williams, lead member for economy, said: “Officers from North Wales Police have told me that they’ve seen an increase in the speed of vehicles over the last couple of years and that it’s an accident waiting to happen.

“We need to remember that this is designed to make the High Street more vibrant and to have a thriving night and daytime economy.

“There’s a large investment going into the High Street now where we’re putting money into pedestrianisation to create a café culture where businesses can have tables and chairs outside for drinks and meals.

“We had anecdotal evidence last year that some vehicles were travelling down the High Street at almost 70mph, which is not acceptable, and something has to be done.”

The new TRO was approved by the executive board at the end of the debate.

By Liam Randall – BBC Local Democracy Reporter