When the footstreets were first introduced, the vision was to “create an area where pedestrians had the priority and freedom to use the whole of the highway by reducing the dominance of vehicles”. This vision remains at the core of future plans and we are keen to move forward with practical ideas for changing times of operation and including additional streets.

The city centre footstreets have been in place for around 25 years. In the late 1980s the area was considered very large for a footstreet zone in a city the size of York. The concept was quite a radical shift in emphasis on how the streets should be used. At the time, there was some resistance to the scheme because of concerns on how it might affect trading; overall it has been recognised as a great success.

There will be different and competing views about how improvements should be achieved. The review will help to inform what options should be considered. Specific issues we need to explore are:
• Parking for those with accessibility issues and where it can be most appropriately provided
• Different restrictions and times of operation
• Vehicles breaking the traffic regulations
• How to increase the evening economy
• City centre cycle parking
• Pedestrian safety

The closing date for the survey is 15 August 2012

Complete the footstreets survey online http://www.york.gov.uk/consultation/consultation_Dtl.aspx?consult_Id=386&status=2&criteria=I