Proposals for a £30,000 scheme to improve access for pedestrians and cyclists to the main shopping area of Paddock Wood have been unveiled by Kent County Council.

A six-week consultation to gather local community views sets out three options for creating a more pleasant environment to encourage people to walk or ride a bike to the town’s shops and mainline train station.

The proposals, which developed out of a scheme briefly trialled in Paddock Wood last year, include:

• Turning Commercial Road into a one-way street northbound between Clavadal Road and Church Road – KCC’s preferred option which would reduce traffic and enable pavements to be widened on either side of Commercial Road in the restricted section. New cycle and car parking plus disabled parking bays and other new street furniture, such as decorative planters, would be installed along with local alterations to bus routes.   

• Applying access restrictions on Commercial Road between Clavadal Road and Church Road – so that only buses, cycles, Blue Badge holders and vehicles loading and unloading would have access between Clavadal Road and Church Road. Existing parking bays would become disabled parking bays with a taxi drop off and loading bays incorporated. And,     

• Applying southbound access restrictions on Commercial Road between Clavadal Road and Church Road – allowing all traffic to travel northbound along the full length of Commercial Road while access southbound would be restricted to buses, cycles and taxis. The existing parking bays would become disabled parking bays, with a taxi drop off and loading bays incorporated.

Councillor David Brazier

KCC Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport David Brazier said: “We are committed to doing more to open up town centres to pedestrians and cyclists. Not only is walking and riding a bike good for our health, it’s also an emissions-free form of transport so better for air quality and the wider environment.

“However, we want to do this is partnership with local communities and I encourage Paddock Wood residents and local businesses to tell us what they think of our proposals so we can consider these views as we develop the scheme.”

People wanting to take part in the consultation should complete the questionnaire on KCC’s website at www.kent.gov.uk/commercialroad by Monday, 26 July 2021.

Anyone with questions about the proposals, which supports KCC’s Active Travel Strategy, should email traffic.schemes@kent.gov.uk or call 03000 41 81 81. Please use the reference ‘Commercial Road, Paddock Wood Consultation’ to identify the scheme.

To receive the consultation material in an alternative format, including hard copies, or language please email alternativeformats@kent.gov.uk or call 03000 42 15 53 (text relay service number: 18001 03000 42 15 53). This number goes to an answering machine, which is monitored during office hours.

Following consultation, KCC will consider all feedback before deciding how to proceed with the scheme. A consultation report will also be made available via the consultation webpage at www.kent.gov.uk/commercialroad