Should Shaftesbury’s temporary pedestrianisation of its High Street become permanent?


That’s the question being asked by the town council, as the pedestrianisation brought in to comply with the two-metre social distancing due to covid expired on July 19.
The town council has announced that it’s supporting a request which has been submitted to Dorset Council, to look at the feasibility of a more permanent pedestrianisation priority scheme.

“This scheme, if approved, would need to be managed via an entirely separate project as a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) has clear legislative conditions that need to be considered,” said the council. “TRO consultations, combined with statutory processes can mean a typical TRO can take between 12 and 18 months to deliver as there are many factors to take into consideration hence why the process can take many months.”

It has also applied to continue the High Street closure until 2pm on Thursdays to allow the weekly market to flourish in the summer. Pedestrianisation of the area was brought in during June 2020 because Shaftesbury’s narrow pavements made it impossible to deliver the government guidelines around social distancing. However, said the council, as the weeks evolved, it received positive and negative feedback on the shopping experience.

A shopper survey was held in August 2020 with a further survey in May this year. Business surveys were also undertaken during this time, with 83 per cent of shop owners or representatives reporting that the temporary pedestrianisation was having a positive effect on their business.

Shaftesbury Town Council says it will continue to seek the public’s views and will keep the community informed as the next steps for a more permanent scheme are developed over the coming weeks and months.

The council’s lead for economic development, Piers Brown, said the temporary pedestrianisation had been ‘a great success’, helping shops through a difficult trading year.

“With 86 per cent of shoppers and 84 per cent of businesses supporting the pedestrianisation becoming permanent, I hope Dorset Council will accept our application so the High Street can continue to buck the national trend and flourish,” he said.

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