Cafe culture or business bust? Row breaks out over plan to pedestrianise Wakefield city centre street

The proposals will mean a section of Northgate, from Cross Street to the Bullring temporarily closed to traffic from Friday, July 10.

The idea of pedestrianising areas of the city centre has been considered by cafes and bars who are looking at new ways to make their businesses thrive while social distancing measures are in place.

But the plan for Northgate has been met with fierce opposition from other businesses on the street and from Wakefield MP Imran Ahmad Khan who say it will damage the local economy.

Express deputy editors says pedestrianisation plan is worth a tryThe council said the plans were temporary and would offer a chance to experiment with how the city works.

Coun Darren Byford, cabinet member for regeneration and economic growth, said: “These are really exciting plans to bring a little bit of cafe culture into the heart of the city centre.

“We hope this will provide a big boost to local businesses, by being able to expand their offer safely, in this new and exciting way. As more and more businesses are beginning to reopen,

I’m pleased we’ve been able to act quickly to support them. The changes will transform this area of the city into a vibrant outdoor space which everyone can enjoy.

“And I encourage residents to please shop, eat and drink locally, and come and see what is on offer.”

But Mr Khan said Wakefield was not equipped to be pedestrianised and the plans would “kill” the city centre.

In a letter to Wakefield Council he said: “To consider implementing these plans now without first building and providing the required infrastructure to effect behavioural and cultural change

is ‘placing the cart before the horse’. This plan will close roads, inhibit visitors and shoppers.” He said that the a consultation period into the plans was not long enough and businesses were not being listened to.

Opposition to the plan is backed by Northgate traders such as Muscleforce owner Neill Sly and Mark Woodhead from Woodhead investments, who called the plan a “disaster”

He said: “The scheme is being presented as a way for the restaurants and bars there to trade alongside coronavirus social distancing rules, but has been talked about for 15 plus years.

“To me, the scheme is a crazy idea. Firstly, the ‘two metre rule’ is about to be done away with so the coronavirus angle is redundant.

“Secondly, making life difficult for drivers and their passengers leads to a decline in visits to shops and offices and restaurants, hurting business.

“We want Wakefield to be more accessible to visitors, not less.”

Wakefield Civic Society, which has called for increased pedestrianisation of the city centre, said the plans were a step in the right direction.

Society president Kevin Trickett said: “Many of the vehicles travelling via the Bullring are just passing through – they bring nothing to the city centre except congestion and pollution and much of the through traffic could find other routes around the city – for example via Mulberry Way and Drury Lane.

“Inevitably, this will take some getting used to and we can understand that some businesses might have concerns.” He said the proposals may need to change in time after it is seen how they work in practice.

The council said diversions will be clearly signposted and new planters and street furniture will be used to clearly close off the road alongside new road signs.

The closure can be in place for a maximum of 18 months before it will either be made permanent, or withdrawn, depending on the success.

It has been paid for through government funding for the reopening of high streets.