The Bath and North East Somerset Council is set to begin work on closing more roads in Bath to through traffic starting November 1, as part of its program to implement liveable neighborhoods. The planned changes will include a major overhaul of Gay Street, through traffic restrictions on Catharine Place, and the closure of Winifred’s Lane to through traffic, despite local concerns about potential risks to children’s safety.
Manda Rigby, the council’s cabinet member for highways, emphasized the need to address speeding and excessive through traffic in central residential areas, while also aiming to create safe and pleasant active travel routes. The works form part of the Lower Lansdown Liveable Neighbourhood, also known as low traffic neighborhoods or LTNs.
The scheduled work includes the installation of collapsible bollards on Catharine Place and the implementation of traffic restrictions on Gay Street and Winifred’s Lane. The changes are expected to alter access routes and traffic flow in these areas, with emergency vehicle access being safeguarded.
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The controversial closure of Winifred’s Lane has previously sparked legal challenges and concerns from locals about its potential impact on traffic near children’s schools. While the council faced some setbacks and criticism, the scheme has been brought back with a new experimental traffic regulation order (ETRO) to initiate the trial phase and a consultation process.
The proposed liveable neighborhood is intended to be a trial, with a consultation period running for the first six months. During this time, the impacts of the scheme will be monitored, and public feedback will be considered before a decision is made on its permanence.
Ms. Rigby highlighted that the council’s approach to consulting on through-traffic changes via an ETRO allows sufficient time to assess the scheme’s impacts and gather community input before making a final decision on its permanence.
The council’s original plan to implement 15 liveable neighborhoods has been scaled back to 11 due to funding constraints and construction cost inflation.