Stricter rules could be brought in barring cars from Lichfield city centre to crack down on drivers flouting regulations.

At present, all drivers apart from permit or blue badge holders are banned from the city’s streets from 9am to 6pm.

However, Lichfield City Council leader David Smedley said too many motorists are breaking the rules. The city council wants to install rising barriers – possibly at the bottom of Tamworth Street – to control access to streets, with the centre becoming a traffic-free zone 10am to 6pm seven days a week.

According to the council, the move would make the city centre a safer and more pleasant environment.

The motion was carried at a council meeting, and Councillor Smedley said the authority would now be lobbying both Lichfield District Council and Staffordshire County Council to kick-start proceedings.

“People – particularly those with limited mobility – will be able to walk about the streets without having lorries around their ears,” he said. “The motion has been carried, and we shall now start the ball rolling to put pressure on the district and county council on this.”

Councillor Smedley added that members would be calling on the police to strictly enforce existing regulations as a short-term solution to drivers ignoring the rules of the pedestrian zone.

He said: “There are people simply flouting the rules. You constantly see lorries, cars and motorists going through the streets when they shouldn’t be. This isn’t an overnight job but we will be starting the process and pushing ahead with it as fast as we can.” The changes would not affect access to city centre car parks.

Richard Lewis, president of Lichfield’s Chamber of Trade, has cautiously welcomed the scheme, saying it would make Lichfield safer for shoppers.

But he added that he was concerned that the scheme could create problems for businesses in the city awaiting daily deliveries, pointing out that the 10am cut-off point could cause difficulty.