Gosforth High Street’s infamous bollards are no more.
Council engineers moved early on Monday morning to finally get rid of the much-maligned poles that have lined the busy route for more than two years and been a source of deep frustration for many locals. While the bollards were installed in 2020 in an effort to give walkers and cyclists more space for social distancing, they have attracted widespread criticism that has seen them labelled ugly and confusing.
But Newcastle City Council’s proposals for what comes next on the high street have become a topic mired in controversy too. The council had confirmed that it was going to bin the bollards last September and has been criticised for a lack of action in the meantime.
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Now that the bollards are gone, the local authority plans to install a new bus lane instead – something that has also provoked the ire of some activists. Campaign groups who promote walking and cycling have been left outraged at the bus lane plans, which they claim simply sees the high street treated as a traffic route rather than a destination.
SPACE for Gosforth said that the shift is “taking away space for people and giving it to motor traffic”, having been happy to see the street cut from four to two lanes of traffic when the bollards arrived during the Covid pandemic. Labour councillor Jane Byrne, the council’s cabinet member for transport, insisted that the bus priority measures being installed over the next two weeks will “greatly improve public transport on one of the busiest routes for buses in the city”.
She added: “Having a more punctual and reliable bus service makes public transport more attractive and is key to encouraging people out of their cars and cleaning up our air. As we’ve set out, we’re taking a phased approach to the High Street, and focusing on improving public transport links as the first phase, with the next phase looking at improving walking, wheeling and cycling.”
Local Lib Dem councillor Tom Woodwark welcomed the bollards’ demise but complained that the council’s intentions for the street remain “unclear”, saying that trust in the authority’s process was “already at rock bottom”. He added: "Support for sustainable travel is to be welcomed, but we hope that the scheme will not replace standing traffic with high volumes of diesel buses in the shopping district, which risks doing nothing to improve air quality in the area. The lack of concrete support for improved active travel is highly regrettable and needs to be reviewed. Measures to manage traffic flow in surrounding areas should be brought forward urgently, but they need to be well thought out, communicated clearly, and developed with the benefit of local knowledge.”
Doc Anand, a local Conservative activist, said it was “hopefully the start of a positive step forward to unleash the potential of our high street”. The retired GP, who dressed as a traffic cone in his campaign against the bollards, added: “After much dither and delay, the pesky cones are finally gone and our high street is finally starting to reflect the pride that Gosforth locals have in our great community.”
The council said that reducing Gosforth High Street from four lanes to two had resulted in “minimal” impact on journey times.
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