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Car ban to bring cafe culture to the High Street
Cars will be banned temporarily from Sutton High Street and Throwley Way in a bid to bring cafe culture to the town centre.
In July Throwley Way will be closed to traffic during trading hours while the high street will be closed to traffic outside of trading hours.
The move is part of the town centre regeneration plan which aims to encourage a Parisian-style cafe culture of tables outside shops, bars and cafes, and to provide more space for pedestrians.
It was agreed unanimously at the Town Centre Traders' Forum after traders said that having the road open to traffic outside of trading hours made no difference to their sales or footfall figures. It now needs approval from other stakeholders before final plans are made.
"The plans for the town centre are yet to be finalised. However, we have extensively canvassed the views of residents, traders, businesses and visitors to the area. We have left no stone unturned in the consultation process, because we all want a more attractive, thriving, vibrant, diverse, welcoming and accessible Sutton town centre," said town centre manager Emily Fahey.
If the trial traffic order is successful the traffic ban could be rolled out permanently - which could also spell the end of the cycle lanes in the High Street.
The road closure will follow the decluttering of the High Street of all the unneccesary bollards, road signs and other street furniture.
But the possible closure of the cycle lanes has been criticised by a member of Sutton Cycle Campaign (SCC) who said if the group was to be consulted on the matter it would suggest shared use roads with signs to alert pedestrians to cyclists.
"It will be impossible to ban cycling unless they want to police it at all times. What is very practical is shared use roads where pedestrians know there will be cyclists and everybody follows the highway code and is considerate of each other," said Shirley Quemby of SCC.
11:15am Thursday 8th May 2008
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CommentPosted by: Confused of Sutton, Sutton on 2:05pm Thu 8 May 08
[quote]In July Throwley Way will be closed to traffic during trading hours while the high street will be closed to traffic outside of trading hours.[/quote]
How will closing [bold]Throwley Way[/bold] help to provide a cafe culture in the High St ? Throwley way is a major arterial road on the one way system..... where is this traffic supposed to go or is this a rather large error in the reporting of this story ?
As for a mixed cycle lane/pedestrianised area, just go and take a look at this outside Morrison's in the High St. Pedestrians are totally unaware of the cycle lanes and most bikes seem to just go down the middle of the road anyway !
In July Throwley Way will be closed to traffic during trading hours while the high street will be closed to traffic outside of trading hours.
How will closing
Throwley Way help to provide a cafe culture in the High St ? Throwley way is a major arterial road on the one way system..... where is this traffic supposed to go or is this a rather large error in the reporting of this story ?
As for a mixed cycle lane/pedestrianised area, just go and take a look at this outside Morrison's in the High St. Pedestrians are totally unaware of the cycle lanes and most bikes seem to just go down the middle of the road anyway !
Posted by: Lie Burstowe, Carshalton on 2:52pm Thu 8 May 08
Pedestrianising a dump makes it no less of a dump.
Pedestrianising a dump makes it no less of a dump.
Posted by: Lie Burstowe, Carshalton on 2:52pm Thu 8 May 08
Pedestrianising a dump makes it no less of a dump.
Pedestrianising a dump makes it no less of a dump.
Posted by: tonyb, Sutton on 4:53pm Thu 8 May 08
If you want a Parisian style cafe culture, why not go to Paris?Another crazy idea from this lunatic Council.Where does the traffic go when Throwley way is closed?Think of the revenue the Council will lose if nobody can park in the multi storey if it is closed for the whole of July.As Confused of Sutton says there must be an error in the story somewhere, but nothing would suprise me under the rpresent regime!!!As for cyclists they use the High Street as a race track and should be banned anyway
If you want a Parisian style cafe culture, why not go to Paris?Another crazy idea from this lunatic Council.Where does the traffic go when Throwley way is closed?Think of the revenue the Council will lose if nobody can park in the multi storey if it is closed for the whole of July.As Confused of Sutton says there must be an error in the story somewhere, but nothing would suprise me under the rpresent regime!!!As for cyclists they use the High Street as a race track and should be banned anyway
Posted by: ray on 8:17pm Thu 8 May 08
Fun for bus passengers then!
Fun for bus passengers then!
Posted by: Colin, Sutton on 9:58am Fri 9 May 08
Quite possibly, the dumbest idea this council has come up with yet...
Quite possibly, the dumbest idea this council has come up with yet...
Posted by: Adrian, Sutton on 10:35am Fri 9 May 08
Hmm... I can't see what will be gained from pedestrianising Throwley Way, either. And the only bit of the High Street that isn't already pedestrianised is the scummy end, and who'd want to consume a food product down there? ;-)
In all seriousness, I'd love to see more of a pavement cafe culture on the High Street in the summer. The only really viable option at the moment is Costa (Nero has outdoor seating, but it's by a main road). Otherwise, the plastic theme bars have their outdoor areas, but they're hardly pleasant places to unwind with the paper and a coffee at lunchtime.
Hmm... I can't see what will be gained from pedestrianising Throwley Way, either. And the only bit of the High Street that isn't already pedestrianised is the scummy end, and who'd want to consume a food product down there? ;-)
In all seriousness, I'd love to see more of a pavement cafe culture on the High Street in the summer. The only really viable option at the moment is Costa (Nero has outdoor seating, but it's by a main road). Otherwise, the plastic theme bars have their outdoor areas, but they're hardly pleasant places to unwind with the paper and a coffee at lunchtime.
Posted by: RLG, surrey on 10:15am Tue 13 May 08
Aside from the chaos this may cause the traffic, wont it be nice having a cafe culture in Sutton, amongst the drunks and gangs of teenage chav mums. Hmmm. Lovely.
Aside from the chaos this may cause the traffic, wont it be nice having a cafe culture in Sutton, amongst the drunks and gangs of teenage chav mums. Hmmm. Lovely.
Posted by: Emily Fahey, Sutton on 12:03pm Thu 15 May 08
PLease note readers that the Guardian made an error in this article. It should read "THROWLEY ROAD" not THROWLEY WAY" Obviously closing the main ring road around the town centre is not an option and would be ridiculous.
PLease note readers that the Guardian made an error in this article. It should read "THROWLEY ROAD" not THROWLEY WAY" Obviously closing the main ring road around the town centre is not an option and would be ridiculous.
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