New Bridgwater one-way system putting shoppers off, MP says

A new one-way system in Bridgwater town centre is “clogging up roads around town”, the local MP has said.

As part of the Celebration Mile works, East Quay and Salmon Parade have been made one-way to traffic.

Ashley Fox, the Conservative MP for Bridgwater, said Somerset Council needs to go “back to the drawing board”, adding he believes shoppers are avoiding the area as a result.

Richard Wilkins, the Liberal Democrat council’s lead for transport, said the system needed “time to settle in”.

Mr Fox said: “The Celebration Mile works in Bridgwater have been badly mismanaged.

“Now those works on Eastover have improved the street scene, but have removed much needed parking, so time will tell whether that improves matters for local businesses.”

He added it is “making journeys to work and school runs and trips to doctors much longer than necessary.

“I’m hearing that people are simply avoiding shopping in town altogether and footfall is down.

“We need to revive our town centre, not ruin it.”

Mandy Maskell, who runs a shop in the Eastover indoor market, said the changes have affected trade.

“Everybody’s business in here is down,” she said.

“I can’t speak for the guys out on Eastover, but I know mine is. The cafe is definitely a lot quieter.

“It’s a nightmare. I’ve probably got a couple of months, if I’m lucky.”

Councillor Wilkins said: “The idea of the one-way systems is to decrease the number of vehicles that are running through the centre of town and make it more pedestrian and shopper-friendly.

“It was only put into place a week ago. These things take time to settle in, a little bit of time for people to try the new road layout. To give up entirely on it in a week, I don’t think, is the right way.”

Somerset Council’s Liberal Democrat leader, Bill Revans, added that the scheme was planned and approved under the previous Conservative-run Sedgemoor District Council and Somerset County Council.