Village traders back move on road plans

A decision to put plans to change the road layout in Penkridge on the backburner until the end of the financial year has received a cautious welcome from village traders.

Staffordshire Highways' plans to narrow the road at Crown Bridge to improve road safety met with stiff opposition from traders because they felt the resulting loss of parking spaces would kill their trade. The parking spaces are used by customers popping into the village to shop with traders on Crown Bridge and a 1,000-signature petition was collected by villagers.

Traders have now been told any new proposals would now be put forward after the end of this financial year in March and would take on board traders' points of view.

Mark Jasper, of Jasper's Bakery, Crown Bridge, said: "I am happy they have taken on board the comments and criticisms and seem to understand where the village businesses are coming from.

"I am still concerned. Parking should not be reduced at all because it is the life's blood of the village – if they set the parking out of the village, people won't park and walk in it just won't happen.

"What we have now works fairly well.

"As the saying goes if it ain't broke don't fix it. There is no need for radical change I just hope that is taken on-board."

The proposals were part of a wider set of plans for three phases of work to take place over three years including a one-way system in Church Road and St Michael's Square, banning right turns at the bottom of Market Street to create two new zebra crossings and a new traffic signal controlled junction replacing the roundabout at Crown Bridge and the A449.

Mr Jasper agreed road safety needed to be addressed in and around the village, particularly on the A449, where he believes vehicles need to be slowed down by reducing the speed limit as it comes to the village down to 30mph.