A TRIAL of a one-way system in St John’s Road will help “provide a safer and more liveable urban environment”, the Infrastructure Minister has said in response to a petition calling for the plans to be scrapped.
The three-month scheme – announced in June – was originally expected to be introduced in August, but subsequently delayed until December by the government to allow “further data gathering” to happen, following criticism from Islanders.
Under proposed changes, the lower part of the town road, between the junction with Parade Road and Cheapside, would be made northbound only – with temporary bollards to allow more space for walking. A petition calling for the plans to be thrown out, due to safety concerns and worries about congestion, has gathered more than 1,000 signatures, prompting a response from Infrastructure Minister Tom Binet.
“This is only a three-month trial and is necessary to collect factual data on which decisions about future road safety improvements will be based,” said Deputy Binet.
The minister added that he, along with St Helier Constable Simon Crowcroft and the St Helier Roads Committee, were committed to the trial as it “would provide an opportunity to improve and widen footpaths and reduce some local traffic”.
“The aim is to provide a safer and more liveable urban environment,” he said.
The Infrastructure Department had “carefully considered” how the “experimental scheme can be safely implemented”, according to Deputy Binet.
“The trial will enable the collection of factual data that will provide for an evidence-based conclusion to be reached about whether the benefits of the scheme outweigh the drawbacks and, therefore, whether it should be made permanent,” Deputy Binet said.
The minister said air quality around Helvetia House School and traffic flows would be carefully monitored as part of the scheme. While the government argues that the proposals will make the area safer, some residents disagree.
In a leaflet created in a private capacity and previously distributed to residents in the area, chartered transport planning professional Rob Hayward argued that the proposal would turn Parade Road – where he lives – into an “accident waiting to happen”, especially for children and elderly people in particular. The trial is to run from 4 December until 1 March 2024. Roadworks are due to be carried out from 30 November until 1 December (between 9.30am and 2.30pm) on Parade Road, and on St John’s Road on 3 December (from 10am to 2pm), to install the one-way system.
