Residents in Darley Abbey are being encouraged to take part in a six-week consultation, to review the emergency travel measures, that saw the redirection of traffic in the area.
The Darley Abbey scheme, introduced on 24th August, aimed to reduce traffic travelling through the village, creating a quieter residential area, encourage walking and cycling, and improve the environment for school travel, and formed part of the ’Moving Derby Forward’ programme, which saw the council receive £228,000 of funding from the Government to introduce Covid-19 emergency transport measures across the city,
Due to the government criteria and funding conditions, the scheme had to be developed quickly and implemented without the usual pre-scheme consultation. In recognition of this the Council included in the original submission that there would be a review of each scheme with appropriate public engagement. This was not, at the time, required by government, but the Council believed this was the most responsible approach given the conditions for implementing the schemes.
The Council submission was bold and ambitious, and assessed by the Department for Transport as being, ‘particularly strong’. This resulted in additional funding being granted.
The Council is now seeking views on the Darley Abbey scheme. The review will take place over the next six weeks, closing on Monday 7th December.
Councillor Matthew Holmes, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transportation said:
‘We’ve always been clear that the scheme is temporary and can be changed. Road users and residents have had the chance to experience the scheme for roughly two months. We are really keen that as many people as possible, and particularly residents of Darley Abbey village, participate in the review. This scheme is something that we haven’t tried before in Derby, and given the requirement to act fast, we are really interested in the full range of views.”