Colwyn Bay....'Ghost road' at heart of seaside town needs action now as traders 'sick to death' of consultations!
In fairness blaming pedestrianization as the reason is not truly factual. There are many towns that have similar that are thriving.
What needs to happen is
A, Reduce the rates and council tax for shops.
B, No more social housing in the town center
C, Ensuring that the shops are suitable for the town, ie for a committee and vet new shops rather than allow anything to fill them.
D, Restore heritage and restore all of the glass canopies outside of shops so that people can shop when it is raining.
E, Make the town look beautiful, more tree planting etc
F, Link the town to the beach
G, Control delinquency and Drug and Alcohol from the streets!
Traders want action ‘now’ to return traffic to a town center ‘ghost road’ after another consultation is set to be launched - with fears that pedestrianization is set to stay. For years there have been calls for all-day vehicle access to Station Road, Colwyn Bay.
Even before the pandemic hit there were around a third of the 30 units empty and since then WH Smith, Peacocks, and Trespass have left the street. In October 2020 Conwy council launched a consultation on proposals for the center of North Wales’s second biggest town - which included traffic returning to Station Road.
It has gone quiet again since then and Business Post contacted the council to see what the latest situation was. They revealed a new consultation is set to launch ‘later this year.
There are concerns that the return of traffic may already be ruled out by a deal for the market to remain in the town center.
Colin Flannigan, the owner of St David’s Commercial, based in Colwyn Bay, has been calling for years for traffic to return to Station Road. He previously called it a “ghost road” in the heart of the town.
He said he is fed up with consultations that lead to nothing and wants action taken - saying the solution is simple.
He told Business Post: “I’m sick to death of this. They keep doing consultations and nothing happens.
“It is clear the current system does not work because there are so many empty units so something needs to change. There is a simple and obvious solution of opening the road up to traffic, allowing 30 minutes of free parking so people can stop, shop and move on.
“Why not just trial this for 12 months and see what happens, something has to change, every single person I speak to about this wants traffic back.”
A spokesperson for Conwy County Borough Council said: “We’ve been working on new proposals for the Town Centre, including new and improved car parks, making the town center more pedestrian friendly, more green infrastructure such as trees and landscaping, better connections to the beach and integrating the railway station into the town center. We will also be looking at traffic flows and traffic management, however, it must be acknowledged that there is a range of views regarding how valuable street space is prioritized and allocated between vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists, businesses such as cafes/pubs, and general social space.
“We will be consulting on the proposals later this year and will be taking all views into account before proceeding with a preferred scheme.”
On the market deal, they added: “When drawing up proposals for any traffic management arrangements for Station Road, consideration will need to be given to all road users and business types, including the market traders.”
From...https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/ghost-road-heart-seaside-town-24837014
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