As preparations get underway for the reopening of non-essential shops and businesses on Monday, the Council continues to work with local businesses and partners to ensure adequate measures are put in place to make the city as safe as possible for returning visitors.
Further support has been given to businesses, where it has been identified that the measures needed to ensure social distancing will involve queuing on the highway due to capacity limitations with their premises.
In order to manage anticipated queues and adapt access arrangements, temporary measures to widen the footways to facilitate social distancing will be implemented on London Road, adjacent to Wilkos and Argos.
This includes the suspension of the loading bay outside Wilkos, and some disabled parking bays outside Cosmo. The disabled parking bays on the opposite side of the road, outside Intu will not be affected.
In addition, the existing bus stop outside of Argos will be relocated to outside Wilkos.
These measures will be introduced under emergency orders to support the safe reopening of non-essential stores in the city. We will continue to monitor the situation and make any necessary changes, in line with Government guidance.
As previously reported, the Council has also recently submitted a £204k ‘Moving Derby Forward’ bid to government to introduce additional Covid-19 emergency transport measures. The proposals are designed to have a high impact and support pedestrians, and cyclists and create more space to aide social distancing. Once approved, these measures will be implemented within eight weeks.
Councillor Matthew Holmes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transportation said:
Giving shoppers and visitors confidence about their personal safety is our most important priority. We are aware that there are some areas in the city where footfall , and potential queues will be higher, and we have worked alongside retailers, to ensure that adequate initial measures are put in place to enable pedestrians to have space to maintain social distancing and stay safe. The situation is dynamic, and further measures may become necessary. We all have a part to play in reducing the spread of the Coronavirus, and helping to keep the city safe, so I would encourage all visitors to acknowledge and follow the current advice and signage whilst in the city and continue to avoid any unnecessary journeys, particularly at peak times, when the city will be at its busiest.