Dear Editor,

I was bemused to read, first the letter to you from The Maldon Society and then the report about the meeting of the Town Council on Monday, with reference to the proposed part closure of the High Street to all traffic apart from buses and those needing access.

MDC's website gives a preamble to the consultation on the proposals as being a scheme that "prioritises pedestrians, cyclists and sustainable transport." It also further states that the scheme would "restrict non-essential motorised vehicle use and free up significant pavement space." Frankly, I would have thought that everyone would consider these to be desirable objectives.

You report Cllr. Stephen Nunn as saying "the High Street has been a thoroughfare since Saxon times and I will not vote for its closure." Unless Mr Nunn knows otherwise, I do not believe that the Saxons suffered double decker buses, heavy lorries and large numbers of cars travelling up and down the High Street. Moreover, he will know that the Doomsday Book recorded Maldon as consisting of 54 households and 180 inhabitants: a far cry from the many (and increasing) thousands who live here now. In any case, the High Street is not being closed. There will still be buses travelling up and down, along with people on foot. Since I presume that the vast majority of Saxons travelled around by the latter method, I would have thought that returning the High Street to pedestrians was actually celebrating and preserving the Saxon heritage of the High Street.

The Maldon Society state that the number of pedestrians on the High Street "even at busy times is not overwhelming the pavements greatly." I find myself wondering whether they are actually talking about Maldon High Street. In many places the pavement is very narrow; just a few feet in several locations and it is frequently necessary to step off the pavement into traffic even in "quiet" periods. As for maintaining social distancing: forget it.

The Maldon Society also mentions Wantz Road as a concern. As a resident of Wantz Road, I can confirm that the vast majority of the traffic travelling up the road reaches the High Street, turns left and then turns right down Market Hill. These vehicles are not visiting the High Street to support local businesses. Stopping them from using Wantz Road/High Street in this manner would remove a huge amount of traffic at a stroke.

I do think that the proposals could be improved. If the carriageway is being narrowed, why does the taxi rank have to move? In fact, there would be space to create several such pull ins along the length of the High Street to allow people to stop for ten or twenty minutes in order to make collections from shops. This has been done successfully in many similar market towns around the country, to the benefit of local traders, shoppers and visitors alike. This would be a "win, win" situation.

Covid-19 has created huge problems for all of us but it has also thrown up opportunities. This could be one such in that we finally have a chance to tackle the problem of traffic on the High Street, about which people have been complaining for decades. Besides, these proposals are "temporary." If they don't work, we can think again. At least let's try them out. We might find we enjoy the experience of shopping on our High Street far more without having to dodge traffic; and shop owners can enjoy the support they deserve instead of Amazon making ever greater profits.

Colin Baldy