Hopes Wrexham Car Ban Will Create 'café Culture'

BBC A man with dark wavy hair wearing a white t-shirt and dark blue gilet standing outside a cafe. The tables and chairs are visible through the windows behind and a green sticker on the window shows a hygiene rating of 5. — Café owner Ashraf Mohammed is looking forward to creating an outdoor seating area for his customers on the pavement

Traffic is to be banned in Wrexham at certain times of the day to make the city centre more “inviting and pedestrian friendly”.

It follows months of regeneration work which has seen four streets pedestrianised plus the introduction of green spaces, tree planting and new street furniture.

Wrexham council said it was a “culture change” but would give a boost to hospitality businesses.

While there is optimism about the changes, some business owners are concerned restricting access will hit trade and make it more difficult for disabled people to access the city centre.

There is new landscaping on High Street, but vehicles will no longer be able to drive and park here or on 11 other streets during some hours

Business owner Ashraf Mohammed runs the High Street Feeder café and said they would have to carefully manage their deliveries because of the restricted times vehicles could enter the city centre zone.

Despite that, he said they had “no choice but to support the plan” now the work was complete.

“We couldn’t see the vision before, but I feel optimistic that the development might bring more business and more footfall,” he said.

Julie Stanley says some of her customers are worried about how they will get to her café

Julie, a woman in her 60s with short brown hair swept over her right ear, wearing a black t-shirt with black apron over and a name badge which reads Julie, Café De Galles. She is standing in front of a café counter which has baked goods and baskets inside and a bunch of yellow carnations on top. There is an olive green wall behind to the left and artwork, out of focus. — Julie Stanley says some of her customers are worried about how they will get to her café

But Julie Stanley, who owns Café De Galles on Church Street also inside the restricted zone, is not so sure.

She said her business had already suffered during the renovation work and although she liked the finished result, she was worried about the traffic ban.

“A lot of my customers are elderly, some are disabled,” she said. “I don’t know how some of them will get here.”

Most people agree the renovation and addition of trees and green spaces has improved the look of the city centre

A rectangular area within a pedestrianised street which is planted up with trees, grasses, shrubs and plants. There are buildings, including an empty shop in the background. — Most people agree the renovation and addition of trees and green spaces has improved the look of the city centre

From Monday there will only be one point of entry to the city centre for vehicles via Yorke Street, with access between 06:00 BST and 11.30 only.

After that time, drivers will face fines.

Parking, which was available to Blue Badge holders on High Street, will also not be allowed outside of the restricted hours.

But more than a dozen new Blue Badge bays have also been created close to the restricted zone.

Ronald Stevenson says the changes are not good news for people who have mobility issues like him

Ronald is in his 70s with a grey buzz cut wearing a blue and teal rugby shirt with a khaki gilet over. He is wearing gold framed glasses and a gold watch and is smiling. He is sitting on a walking frame, just visible, next to an information board which reads Wrexham Facts and has some out of focus text. — Ronald Stevenson says the changes are not good news for people who have mobility issues like him

Ronald Stevenson, 77, said the new rules would cause him problems.

“I have spinal stenosis, hence the walking frame, so I need to get as close to as where I want to go as possible. I won’t be the only one annoyed about that either,” he said.

But Fitzroy Williams, visiting Wrexham from Birmingham, said traffic-free pedestrianised areas were safer.

“It’s good, it allows people to walk freely,” he said

Fitzroy Williams says the city centre looks good and thinks it would be nice not to have to look out for traffic

Fitzroy smiling directly into camera, wearing a black t-shirt with a dark grey scarf and a black jacket over his arm. Wrexham high street is visible in the background. — Fitzroy Williams says the city centre looks good and thinks it would be nice not to have to look out for traffic

Susan Hughes, from Wrexham, said she thought the renovation looked good. She added more needed to be done to get people in to the centre, now that it is a city.

“I agree with it…if they want to bring a lot more culture in. Wrexham is a nice place to live – I think it looks much better,” she said.

Susan Hughes, from Wrexham, likes the improvements

Sarah has short blonde hair and is wearing a grey t-shirt and silver drop earrings. She is sitting in the sun at a pavement table outside a cafe. — Susan Hughes, from Wrexham, likes the improvements

Nigel Williams, Wrexham’s lead member for economy and regeneration, said traffic restrictions represented a big change, but that it would bring benefits.

“Our vision really is for, particularly on the high street, to have a café culture,” he said.

“There are some beautiful buildings…and lots of hospitality businesses, bars and restaurants. So this will provide the opportunity for them to have outdoor seating areas, which will hopefully increase their trade from the day into the evening as well.”

He added the new Blue Badge bays meant the city centre will still be accessible.

“It’s an exciting time for Wrexham,” he said.

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