Vale of Clwyd MP Dr James Davies has welcomed a U-turn by Rhyl county councillors which will see the removal of the unpopular bollards in Rhyl town centre.
The bollards were installed to help create more space for pedestrians during the pandemic, as part of the Welsh Government’s Active Travel and Covid-19 scheme.
James firmly opposed the scheme from the start, before its installation. As predicted, businesses have said the bollards give the appearance the town is closed and create multiple issues for customer parking and deliveries – while doing very little to aid social distancing.
Last year James met business owners to discuss the problems the bollards are causing and called on Denbighshire County Council to revise the measures.
He is therefore delighted that Rhyl county councillors have changed their views on the issue, allowing Denbighshire Cabinet Lead Member for Waste, Transport and the Environment and Conservative Cllr Brian Jones to action the removal the bollards.
Welcoming the news, James said:
“Businesses have been up in arms over these bollards since they were first installed as they block access to loading and disabled parking bays, and make their premises look closed.
“The last 12 months have been extremely tough for these businesses and we need to ensure that when they are able to reopen, customers and deliveries can access them easily.
“As I said in my response to the consultation last Summer, these bollards bring no practical benefits to Rhyl and have been a poor way of spending public money. I am therefore extremely pleased that the decision has now been taken to have them removed and with many shops re-opening in just four days' time, I call on the county council to ensure this work takes place as soon as possible.”
Andrew Gough of Home Elegance on Queen Street said:
"This is fantastic news. When we were able to open, we were losing out massively because of these bollards as there was nowhere for customers to park. It was also a hazard for disabled people. It has been a really tough year, so to be faced with these additional issues was just a nightmare. I am so pleased they are being removed."
Craig Harker of Harker's Leisure said:
"I'd like to thank James for all his help on this and the council for seeing that these lane defenders are not necessary. Hopefully, they will be removed in time for us reopening."
