Mixed reaction to plan to shut street to cars
PARK Street traders are split as to whether or not closing the street to cars would be the right thing to do.
Business owners shared a range of views after Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees announced plans to close Park Street to cars in his annual State of the City address last week.
The proposals would be one of the measures to be introduced to encourage more sustainable travel, but the mayor predicted a mixed reaction and compared it to the controversy around Colston’s statue.
A public consultation on the proposals – which would see Park Street closed to private cars but accessible to public transport, taxis, deliveries and exempt vehicles – will be at some point over the coming months, the mayor said last week.
Hannah Dymond, manager of Bird & Blend, which has been on Park Street for five years, said she liked the idea.
Ms Dymond said, at the moment, people drive too fast and it is very noisy, adding closing the road to private cars would create a more peaceful environment.
“I think it would make it more people friendly,” she said. “I do not think it would put people off as you can not really park on Park Street anyway.
“People come here on foot and cars drive past here to go somewhere else.”
Ms Dymond said Park Street shoppers tend to park on the multi-storey Trenchard Street car park or the one along Jacob’s Wells Road, adding that she would close Park Street from Park Row to the junction with St George’s Road.
Quite a lot of shoppers already walk or cycle as they are environmentally conscious, she said.
“I think that it would enhance rather than impact negatively,” she added. “It is constant traffic and I would welcome its reduction, and particularly the improvement to air quality that comes with it.
“Sometimes we are trying to talk to people and literally you can’t hear them, especially if wearing a mask, and you have to wait until the traffic has gone past.
“A lot of vehicles drive fast up here and you see a lot of near misses happening all the time.”
But Karen Purnell, manager of the Sue Ryder charity shop, would like things to stay as they are.
The store manager said shoppers already struggle with parking and its cost, and that they would just go elsewhere if the street closes to private cars.
“There are lots of people that just pop into Park Street for the hour,” she said. “To be able to get as close as you can is a good thing.
“I would not support it at all and I worry it would damage trade.”
Michael Territo, co-owner of Territo Tailoring, said he would like to know more about the exemptions and, for instance, what happens with blue badge holders.
He said they have a large catchment area of people who go to their shop, including quite a lot of elderly customers.
It is necessary to slow cars down, he said, and crossing islands would be a good idea.
Mr Territo suggested having Park Street as a one-way street and said he would be in favour of closing the street to private cars on Fridays and Saturdays from 7pm, to encourage people to eat in the area.
“There are big steps in between having the road closed and open, like the one way,” he said. “I am in two minds about it. This street needs to be a place where people can cross from one side to the other and it is very easy.
“I think they could do a step in between. There are lots of things to consider, I am not against it – I just hope all the things are considered.”
Gideon Gurung, owner of Ganesha Handicrafts, said he supports the idea in principle but that a lot of thought and attention to detail need to go into it.
A lot of his clients park on the street, he said, so he suggested closing the road to private cars in the week days but keeping it open on weekends as a starting point.
Mr Gurung said: “It would offer people a peaceful shopping environment. It is a pretty area as it is and this would make it nicer and quieter.
“I think it would take time for people to get used it and maybe initially it would put people off, especially as they would need to walk up the hill.
“Initially it may have a negative impact but I think people would get used to it.
“It is necessary to have a discussion with all the shop owners to make sure it would not damage the area.”