RE: Blackett Street Pedestrianisation.
(20 Mar 2022, 7:00 pm)busmanT wrote and so it should. The services using Blackett Street are the busiest in the north east and serve areas of high population density.
There aren’t really any suitable alternative routes with creating “bus jams” and little suitable pavement space for stops.
The last thing that operators need whilst trying to get passengers back on their buses is for them to be dumped at unsuitable stops.
We'll see in time, but I can't see the Planning Inspectorate ruling in bus operators favour here.
The argument that a move away from Blackett Street would be to the detriment of elderly and disabled people is pretty baseless. Waiting facilities on Blackett Street are pretty poor and has become dangerous for pedestrians due to over-bussing.
Arguably a bus station provides better waiting facilities for everyone, especially the elderly and disabled. It also takes customers straight into Eldon Square, avoiding the elements. If Blackett Street services were diverted into Eldon Square, then the only shopping area that would be slightly further away is the Grainger Market, but a Market Street/Newgate Street loop would actually improve access.