City street to remain traffic free at weekends

Hertfordshire County Council said George Street in St Albans will remain traffic free for most of the weekend

Part of a city will remain free of traffic for most of the weekend after three quarters of respondents in a consultation expressed their support.

George Street in St Albans has been closed to all vehicles except bicycles from 11:00 on Saturday to 07:00 Monday since November 2023.

It has been open to traffic at other times, with a one-way system in place.

After more than 800 responses, Hertfordshire County Council said the current arrangements and road layout would be retained.

'Historic street'

It will also explore making some minor changes to replace some of the temporary plastic bollards and planters with something more permanent.

In November, the council opened a consultation to establish if the street should be restored to two-way traffic seven days a week. It said the existing arrangements aimed to make the street more pleasant for pedestrians, help businesses accommodate customers more safely, open up outdoor space for events and improve air quality.

Of the 804 people who responded to the survey, 72.4% supported keeping the current arrangements, 15.4% also supported the restrictions, but felt minor changes needed to be made and 12% said they wanted the road returned to two-way traffic every day.

The original closure of George Street, High Street and Market Place was introduced in the summer of 2020 to allow more space for social distancing during Covid-19, and to encourage people to return to the city centre after the pandemic.

Market Place has since been closed permanently to traffic seven days a week, except for deliveries, while the High Street has been reopened.

Councillor Phil Bibby, who is responsible for highways and transport at the council, said the authority was "pleased we have been able to arrive at something that is well supported locally".

"George Street is a wonderful historic street that is not well suited to two-way traffic, he said.

"This new layout on George Street supports our vision of creating a cleaner, greener, healthier Hertfordshire, while also helping local businesses thrive."