A new look will be coming to part of an Isle of Wight High Street as parking is removed to make way for wider pavements for pedestrians
The go-ahead was given last night (Thursday) by the council’s cabinet to make the stretch of Newport High Street — from St James’ Square to Holyrood Street — more pedestrian friendly, making it safer to move around.
It is hoped it will help continue the revival of the town following the impact of Covid, by bringing more people in.
The scheme will widen pavements by removing parking spaces and creating new public realm areas, with seating and planting.
The project is a key feature of Newport’s improvement under Historic England’s High Street Heritage Action Zone (HAZ) designation, which it has had since 2019.
The changes are being funded through the HAZ although money for the wider project will stop in March. The High Street scheme must be completed by then.
It is proposed the work will take place in January after the Christmas shopping period.
Speaking at the cabinet meeting yesterday, highways lead, Cllr Phil Jordan, said concerns had been raised about removing the parking and the potential impact it could have on the town, but said there were ample parking spaces in the area.
He stressed it was not complete pedestrianisation of the High Street as that was not what the community wanted.
Cllr Jordan also highlighted the one-hour free parking in some car parks which has increased the amount of people coming into the town.
In response, Cllr Geoff Brodie sought clarification on the Isle of Wight Council’s financial backing of the trial, saying Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council puts a large amount of its annual budget into the scheme but it required the larger authority to do the same.
For the scheme to continue beyond September, the council needed to put the £40,000 forward soon, he said.
Cllr Brodie also said he wanted a further look at the traffic through the town — going down the High Street towards Coppins Bridge — as he said it was an issue that had not yet been addressed.
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