Meole Brace Retail Park owners to investigate traffic issues at Shrewsbury site
The owners of Shrewsbury's Meole Brace Retail Park are to carry out investigations into traffic jams at the site.
Shropshire Council's highways bosses have welcomed the announcement and also agreed that measures suggested as part of a new Sports Direct shop for the site are acceptable.
In an effort to alleviate concerns about traffic flow at the retail park two speed bumps – one with a zebra crossing - will be removed.
Under the proposal the second roundabout on the park, to McDonald's, Sainsbury's and Pizza Hut, will also be widened. The current one-way lane from Sainsbury's will be made two-way.
Mark Wootton, area manager for Shropshire Council's north and central developing highways department, said the council welcomed the proposals but accepted that the area would still suffer from traffic problems at times.
He said: "The list of measures above have been discussed and agreed and are considered to provide a degree of betterment to the internal traffic flow within the site. These measures can be implemented within the land controlled but the applicant and are considered to be beneficial in the context of the development proposal which essentially introduces a single retail unit into the remaining land available within the retail frontage around the car park.
"It is recognised at the outset however that at times the sheer volume of traffic trying to get into the site and back out onto Hereford Road will result in traffic issues, particularly those at peak shopping times and seasonal occasions."
Mr Wootton has said that the owners of the park are to carry out investigations into the traffic flow, and the effect of the Sainsbury's store on the situation, in addition to the measures introduced along with the Sports Direct store.
He said: "The applicant is to carry out further investigative work to assess the traffic issues surrounding the supermarket/retail park and impact on the highway with traffic and parking surveys."
He added: "The highway authority are supportive of the applicant towards considering the wider highways implications of the development on Hereford Road and the potential to look at more robust measures."
The new Sports Direct store would be built in the corner of the retail park between Argos and TK Maxx. The land had been suggested as the only way of creating a second entrance onto the site.
Earlier this year Mr Wootton said a new entrance should be considered in the long term.
He said: "The development of the northern area of the retail park has curtailed any opportunity to provide a secondary access or exit other than consideration of utilising the servicing corridor of land to the rear of Sainsbury’s and Units 1 to 7. This would be a major project consideration, perhaps outside of the scope of this application but nevertheless should be considered in the longer term."
