Families at four Wiltshire primary schools will see new traffic restrictions outside the school gates from Friday 4 September as Wiltshire Council launches its School Streets pilot.
The trial is being introduced at Aloeric Primary School in Melksham, Fynamore Primary School in Calne, Minster Primary School in Warminster and Queen’s Crescent Primary School in Chippenham.
School Streets temporarily restrict through traffic on roads outside schools at the start and end of the school day during term time. Wiltshire Council says the measures are intended to improve safety, reduce congestion and encourage more families to walk, wheel or cycle to school. The restrictions will only apply for short periods around school drop-off and pick-up, with the exact times varying between schools. Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras will be used to enforce the schemes.
However, Wiltshire Council has confirmed that no fixed penalty notices will be issued during the first few weeks to drivers who enter a School Streets zone for legitimate reasons, while residents and other road users become familiar with the arrangements. The clarification follows feedback from local communities about elderly relatives, carers and tradespeople who may need to access properties within the zones during the restricted periods.
Dropping off or collecting children from school will not be considered a legitimate reason for entering a restricted zone during its operating hours. Exemptions are available for emergency services, people living within the restricted areas, businesses within the zones and people with defined needs. The council has written to affected households and businesses with details of the exemption process.
The schemes are being introduced using Experimental Traffic Regulation Orders, which will enable the council to monitor how they work while continuing to gather feedback over the next 18 months.
Cllr Ian Thorn, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said, “Tomorrow marks an important step in our efforts to create safer and healthier journeys to school for children and families across Wiltshire.School Streets are designed to reduce traffic and congestion at the busiest times of the school day, helping to make the areas outside schools calmer, safer and more pleasant for everyone.
“We’ve heard the concerns raised by local people, particularly around access for elderly relatives, carers and tradespeople, and we’ve listened. We will take a proportionate approach during the first few weeks of the trial, while people become familiar with the new arrangements.
“Our aim is to change behaviour around the school run and make it safer for school pupils and their carers, not to penalise people who have a genuine need to access these areas.”
People will be able to comment on the schemes throughout the 18-month experimental period before any decision is made about whether they should become permanent.
More information is available at www.wiltshire.gov.uk/school-streets.
