Following last night's Ward Forum the Gurn has been informed that NICE have tweaked the masterplan to reflect concerns raised by both the Co-op and the Highland Council.
The latest vision for our town centre ("for the people, by the people" in this observer's humble opinion) can be seen here.
The latest vision for our town centre ("for the people, by the people" in this observer's humble opinion) can be seen here.
Perhaps not a bad attempt.
ReplyDeleteFor what it's worth:
1) Those two traffic islands on King Street are a nice idea, but I really think they're too tight for the large HGCs plus trailers that I see coming through now. Any cyclists around at the same time wouldn't stand a chance.
Maybe the planners think they conform to the latest official guidelines, but do planners ride bikes? Also, how does the occasional 'out of gauge' load such as oversize wind turbines from Inverness/Cromarty Port get around them?
2) What's the point of a bus station up near the police station? Don't planners use buses themselves? To be fair, the new stops at the Community Centre, one either side of the roas, seem better.
3) So the old town centre petrol station vanishes. I used to use it regularly. I suppose it can't be run at a profit without a shop attached nowadays.
4) I'll have to walk the ground and count the marked parking spaces - but it looks as though the car parking available on the High Street side of King Street has actually been reduced.
As pedestrians know, King Street traffic flow is frequently interrupted by the Traffic lights at Leopold Street and at the lower car park entrance by Royal Walk, allowing foot traffic a chance to cross King Street safely. But eliminating both these traffic lights will make it rather dangerous to cross King Street at all, especially for the old and disabled. What are they supposed to do with this plan?
Still, I look forward to a public site meeting with the senior planners, who will be given a chance to show their skills at riding bicycles in narrow spaces, and rushing across the street using a zimmer frame.