EVERY two or three years, in the offices at Taunton Deane, someone brings up the emotive subject of ‘pedestrianising’ our town centre.

The reason they do this is a psychological move by the Highways Department and Councillors to lull Taunton’s population into believing the idea is better for us all; slowly nibbling away at our subconscious.

I have in the past made comments, which the County Gazette has published, regarding this matter having had first-hand experience of its consequences and in so trying to warn those that have these foolish ideas to think again.

Authorities up and down the country persist with the idea that the car, in the centre of a town, is a bad thing so they wish to banish it!

RELATED: Cars to be banned from three major Taunton streets

The larger retail and professional service industries see this and have moved out of the town centres, to the periphery, taking with them the customers that otherwise bring the sole and support to a town’s general commerce.

The question is, why have these businesses done this?

There is a simple answer: They see the importance of the car and offer free car parking – albeit with a time restriction.

Lidl, Tesco, Sainsburys and Morrisons offer free parking – if Taunton officials have not noticed – and 75 per cent of users go into the town centre and use this facility as a convenience.

If these shops were to charge, as the Castle Hotel has, there would, I am sure, be a bigger drop in retail in our town centre.

Walk along Station Road over the bridge, then through the town centre and finally along Fore Street and observe the variety of different small businesses – a majority of them national companies.

On Station Road you will notice the smaller independent traders with some office space on the upper floors. A predominance of eateries and food providers, interspersed with hairdressers, estate agents and household emporiums.

The car, like owning your own house, the coloured television, mobile phone, is now an essential part of our human needs.

The car should be enhanced by all and encouraged by councils and provide low-cost parking enabling the shopper to access and provide meaningful independent shops to flourish in town centres.

By all means build purpose-built pedestrian zones – as Taunton has at the Orchard Centre – but not at the cost of pushing the car user out of our town centres.

JEREMY LEYTON
Taunton