Concern over pedestrian safety is our chance to improve Hastings Town Centre for shoppers

From: Andrew Colquhoun, Croft Road, Hastings
Wellington Place in Hastings SUS-200818-131049001Wellington Place in Hastings SUS-200818-131049001
Wellington Place in Hastings SUS-200818-131049001

I am pleased - and relieved - that there are finally signs of political action to tackle the growing threat to pedestrian safety in Wellington Place and the surrounding area (“Safety fears at drivers ignoring no vehicle signs”.

I had been raising this issue with East Sussex CC and Hastings BC members and officers since the winter as there seemed to be no action about the increasing incursion of vehicles particularly centred around the fast food outlets. At times in the late afternoon there have been as many as 20 vehicles, weaving and parking among pedestrians.

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Part of the underlying problem is that Wellington Place is still legally regarded by East Sussex CC as a road, whereas local residents assume that it is a pedestrian precinct. The solution might therefore be to de-designate this status as a road.

Unfortunately, I am told that de-designation will take a long time because of the consultation and other legal processes which the county would have to go through. An easier interim measure might be to extend the hours during which the area is a pedestrian precinct. At present, these hours are restricted to 1000 to 1600: an extension from 0900 to 1900 would reduce the risk to pedestrians.

Another aspect of the problem is that although the bollards by the Odeon were mended several months ago, they are still not operating, nor are the ones in Robertson Street. This might be because the bollards need monitoring remotely to prevent unauthorised access.

Any solution needs to take into account the possibility of just displacing the problem elsewhere: there is already evidence of this in Castle Street outside the old Argos store and on Wellington Square, for example.

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Sarah Godley of Sussex Police must be right when she says that local businesses need to be allowed to sustain their trade, but this might overlook the fact that the increased incursion by vehicles is actually unpopular with some of these businesses.

Finally, there is also a big opportunity here for real long-term improvement in the environment of our town centre by using some of the Town Deal money for imaginative planting in a full-time pedestrian precinct.

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