UK SEASIDE TOWN TO SCRAP SPANISH STYLE PLAZA MONTHS AFTER IT WAS BUILT

A 'Spanish style' plaza on the seafront of a UK town is set to be scrapped just months after it was installed.

When Kent County Council announced plans to install the £250,000 pedestrianised area on the front of Herne Bay, a group of furious local car enthusiasts made their opposition felt. Sallyann Baxter launched a petition claiming the plaza caused traffic issues, with more than 1,700 people having signed so far.

The scheme has seen officials close off a stretch of the bay's seafront to cars, resulting in a one-way system that residents have complained is too difficult to navigate. A 20mph speed zone was introduced and the plaza resurfaced, in a bid to make the area more pleasant for pedestrians.

Sallyann wrote on the petition: "The new layout around our newly formed plaza has resulted in traffic congestion on our high street and is discouraging visitors from coming to our area. This goes against Kent County Council's initial plan of encouraging tourism." It is not clear what the true impact on visitor numbers has been or will be once the busier summer season arrives.

Janet Farbrace, 73, who has lived in the town for more than 50 years, complained the scheme appeared as if it had "been pushed through by people who don't live or work in our town". She previously said that she would dig up the plaza herself if she had a digger.

Although no decision has yet been made as to the plaza's fate, the man who will decide it – Kent County Council cabinet member for transport Neil Baker – has claimed it is not long for this world, Kent Online reported.

“The removal of the plaza is as close to a guarantee as you’re going to get,” he told the publication. “More elements may or may not go but I will need to reflect on feedback to find the best solution.” It is understood that the plaza may be closed off on certain dates in the future to encourage turnout to specific public events.

The decision to dismantle the zone comes just four months after it was installed.

While the Herne Bay plaza issue is very much a local one, it is the latest in a number across the UK in which political tensions have flared over traffic calming measures designed to make communities more pleasant for those who live in them, and air less polluted.

Many of the candidates in the London Mayoral elections on May 2 have pitched themselves in opposition to the ULEZ scheme, which is designed to get the most polluting and harmful cars off the streets. The Conservative candidate Susan Hall has made it a central plank of her campaign and promised to scrap the measure on day one.

The Mayor's office says that ULEZ "will mean an additional five million Londoners breathing cleaner air, and reduce harmful NOx, particulate matter and carbon emissions from vehicles."

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2024-04-19T13:36:45Z dg43tfdfdgfd