A crunch meeting is set to decide whether Hadleigh’s controversial barriers, brought in during the Covid-19 crisis, should stay or go.
The Safer Spaces measures were brought in on July 27 to allow more room for social distancing on the busy High Street, as well as a one-way traffic system where motorists are not allowed to park.
But the scheme has been widely derided - with Jane Haylock, owner of Idler Bookshop in High Street, saying: “It’s a complete mess. It looks like there are major road works on the road.”
A recent survey saw two thirds of respondents criticise the measures, which have reportedly further harmed footfall to shops in what is an alredy difficult trading period.
Hadleigh Town Counci is to hold a meeting on Thursday, August 20 at 7pm via Zoom, where the barriers will be discussed.
It will be deciding whether to keep, amend or get rid of them.
MORE: Anger in Hadleigh from residents and businesses at social distancing measures
Neil Bevis, a local business owner and co-founder of Hadleigh Foodbank who was born and raised in the town, has created a Facebook group named ‘Save Hadleigh High Street’ which has nearly 1,000 members.
He said: “This meeting is an opportunity for Hadleigh, as a town, to remove what we don’t like and I am pretty optimistic about it.
“The lack of clarity surrounding this has been incredibly frustrating and there have been several issues from the day the barriers went up with shops suffering and confusion from drivers over the signage.
“It would be great to see them removed after this meeting.”
Suffolk County Council and Babergh District Council have said the barriers are temporary, emergency measures during the coronavirus crisis and that they “are under constant review and we will work with communities to refine them as required”.
Members of the public can attend Thursday’s town council meeting by clicking on the link on the town council website or phoning 0203 481 5237.
MORE: Two thirds vote against controversial Hadleigh High Street barriers
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