Controversial road closure of Hyde Street in Winchester to be reversed

The county council this afternoon decided to reopen the road after an experimental closure sparked by the Covid crisis.

Hyde Street was shut last year to allow for easier social distancing on North Walls, one of the city's main arteries. The decision means also that temporary barriers that narrowed the two-lane highway to one lane will be removed from North Walls.

Hyde Street: currently closed to through traffic

This afternoon senior county councillor Russell Oppenheimer, in his decision day, agreed to reverse the closure. He had heard a series of deputations from both pro- and anti-closure local residents.

Cllr Oppenheimer, speaking about a number of 'active travel' schemes in Winchester, said: "It is right we lower the temperature and take out the more controversial schemes and come back with proposals that are thought-through and proportionate and respect the local environment and the needs of residents, businesses and the environment."

It was currently unclear when the road will be reopened.

His announcement followed lengthy deputations from local people, with four favouring the reopening and three against.

The closure was popular with people living in Hyde as it made their neighbourhood much quieter but largely unpopular with people living on roads made busier such as Worthy Lane and drivers stuck in the increased traffic in the city centre.

Traffic on the narrowed North Walls

Linda Mackie, of Worthy Lane, told the decision day meeting that the closure has worsened congestion, pollution and speeding outside her house.

Steve Marper, a Monks Road resident for 30 years, agreed that the road should be reopened and also suggested a new road across the Worthy Lane car park to ease congestion.

But Prof Nigel Wood, of Hyde Street, called for the closure to remain: "The current measure is imaginative and progressive. By ending the measures nothing will be gained and a great opportunity would be lost."

Chris Holloway called on the county to take the lead in taking the Climate Crisis seriously. A petition in the last ten days calling for permanent closure had attracted 762 people's support, she said.

The junction connecting Hyde Street and North Walls

Other people Alex Cox, of St Swithun Street, and Sarah Davies, of Winchester Business Improvement District, spoke in favour of the closure of The Square to through traffic as boosting local hospitality businesses, and car-free at weekend so tables can be placed in the carriageway. That was agreed.

The report to Cllr Oppenheimer said the closure of Hyde Street and the narrowing of North Walls would still be "considered as part of a longer term package of improvements". But it admitted the arrangement has been "unable to cope" with current traffic volumes.

A new idea is traffic lights on Worthy Lane with Andover Road and keeping Hyde Street open one-way only.

Meanwhile, the decision day approved other less controversial measures including the Square closurem pedestrian improvements on Jewry Street, contraflow cycling on St Peter Street and Parchment Street; and a signal crossing of Romsey Road at Clifton Terrace.

John Arthur, of Cycle Winchester, was disappointed that measures in Upper High Street had been dropped because of local opposition. It knocked a hole in a coordinated cycle network, he told the meeting.

Earlier this year the county council consulted on the Hyde Street/North Walls changes and 970 people responded, with 53 per cent saying it would encourage them to use 'active travel', walking or cycling, on North Walls whilst 42 per cent said it would not.

Closing Hyde Street split the city with 46 per cent both for and against. A petition with 1,618 called ‘Re-open Hyde Street to all vehicles’ was presented to the county council in March. Groups such as Winchester Action on Climate Change campaigned for the closure to be retained.

A proposed contraflow cycle lane on Upper High Street was not popular with local residents as it would impede parking and deliveries. It has now been dropped by the county council.

In the report to the July 29 meeting the council said: "That traffic volume in the city have recovered to pre pandemic levels and at some times of the day they are above. That the nature of private vehicle travel being undertaken has changed with less commuting and an increase in what appears to be non-essential trips i.e. leisure, holiday, shopping and socialising. These trips are made outside the traditional peak periods leading to a very different traffic situation that is also likely to change."

Speaking after the decision, local city councillor Charles Radcliffe said: ""The North Walls decision will be popular in some parts of the community but in reality it does nothing to solve Winchester's long-term traffic problems. With the city growing, the only way to tackle congestion and pollution is by reducing the number of cars and vans driving through the city centre and, in particular, the one-way system. That's a challenge that both the city and county councils need to confront sooner rather than later."

The junction connecting Hyde Street and North Walls