A leading member of Tenby's Commercial Ratepayers Association is angered and disappointed that Pembrokeshire County Council have ignored the organisation's views over the town's controversial pedestrianisation scheme.

Despite outcry from some groups of businesses and residents, Tenby's walled town was closed off to all but emergency vehicles from 12 noon to 4 pm daily throughout August this year.

Two weeks ago, the county council's cabinet accepted a proposal by director of transportation, Mr. Huw Roberts, that the pedestrianisation be extended to take in all of July, with the traffic ban starting earlier in the day, at 11 am and ending later at 5 pm.

Speaking the the Observer this week, Mr. Nigel Chapple, vice-chairman of the Commercial Ratepayers, was disappointed that the efforts the association had made on behalf of those businesses in the town not in favour of any form of pedestrianisation had been "brushed aside by the county council and its cabinet."

"It's obvious that the county council had no intention of taking the views of the Commercial Ratepayers and the Walled Town Residents Association into consideration," he claimed. "Clr. Brian Hall has said that Pembrokeshire County Council is one of the best authorities for consulting in Wales, but in making this decision the cabinet are quite obviously not listening to what is being said to them."

Mr. Chapple questioned the report submitted to the cabinet on pedestrianisation feeling that the county council's survey, on which the decision was based, was flawed.

"There were omissions and convenient typing errors in the report," claimed Mr. Chapple. "I would also suggest that comments unfavourable to the county council's views were left out.

"One question on the survey in particular was very ambiguous," he continued. "It asked if you would be in favour of pedestrianisation for shorter hours.

"Obviously people who were not in favour of pedestrianisation at all, and those with the conflicting view that there should be pedestrianisation for the four-hour period, would both tick the same box.

"Many people ticked the box because they don't want shorter hours, they don't want the scheme at all, yet the responses have been used to back up the scheme in the submission to the cabinet."

Mr. Chapple also felt that the report had been 'massaged', by assuming people had read questions on the survey in a particular way.

"One part shows that 508 people were in favour of the county council considering ways of improving the traffic situation in Tenby other than pedestrianisation," Mr. Chapple pointed out. "However, the report says that as there is 'conflict between the responses to this question and the general support for pedestrianisation'. Mr. Roberts claims that the analysts of the survey believe the people read the question as 'other additional ways' not 'other alternative ways'.

"That strikes me as the county council not liking what they heard and moving the goal posts.

"The survey showed a two-to-one majority in favour of alternative traffic management instead of pedestrianisation, but that was not what the county council wanted to hear.

"The survey also shows that the views of those living and working in the town were diametrically opposed to those living and working outside.

"Clr. Mickey Folland once said that if one Tenby business suffered because of pedestrianisation then it was one too many, yet the survey shows that 37 per cent of businesses within the walled town had fewer customers."

Mr. Chapple also felt that the Commercial Ratepayers' own survey gave a comprehensive overview from the organisation's members.

Out of 53 surveys given out, there were 51 replies, which is a damned good response rate," he said.

"Our survey showed that the businesses overwhelmingly did not have the confidence in Mr. Roberts, and sadly it looks as if those views have proved to be correct.

"Mr. Roberts told Tenby 2020 that he had successfully pedestrianised several towns. Would it not instill a bit more confidence in him if he told us where they were? Were they streets, or like Tenby seaside resorts bounded by the sea on two sides?

"You only have to look at other seaside resorts that have been pedestrianised, like Rhyl and Porthcawl, to see that businesses are adversely affected.

"When partial pedestrianisation was introduced in Llandudno, it was not long before the council had to rescind the decision because trade was being affected," Mr. Chapple continued.

"It is most unfortunate that neither the cabinet, nor the council's scrutiny committees have any Tenby representatives, because it means that decisions concerning people's livelihoods and people's lives are being made by people who have no financial or personal interest in the town.

"If Mr. Roberts is convinced this is the way forward for Tenby, I look forward to the day he buys a house within the town walls.

"I'm glad there has been some notice of what was said in the survey, with the police introducing three new officers for the summer months and Clr. Folland taking up the cudgel over the fact that the town does not appear to be getting value for money from the county council when it comes to town cleanliness.

"However, I also hope that, if this extended scheme does go ahead, they will listen to us next September when we tell them there's been a downturn in trade during July and August. As far as I can see, the main place to benefit from Tenby pedestrianisation will be Pembroke Dock, because everyone will go there to shop.

"If ever there was a case of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) this is it. I'm sure the people who voted in favour of this scheme would not be happy if it happened on their own doorstep!"

RESIGNATION CALL

Mr. David N. Thomas, the prospective Assembly Candidate for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, has called for the resignation of Mr. Roberts, Pembrokeshire's highways director.

Mr. Thomas said that the pilot scheme in the walled town area of Tenby had not been a success, as Mr. Roberts had claimed, because the level of consultation with the walled town residents was at best minimal, and for some, non-existent, and the "massaging" of survey figures by the county council "a scandal."

The theory of some pedestrianisation was acceptable, but the new draconian measures proposed by the county council cabinet were totally unacceptable for the walled town area.

"There appears to be strong case here for these decisions by the Pembrokeshire County Council cabinet to be referred to the European Court of Human Rights," said Mr. Thomas. "It's obvious that Mr. Roberts has not thought through these proposals, just like his efforts in August this year which were a complete shambles.

"The cabinet has made the wrong decision for Tenby on this issue, and when businesses start closing and people lose their jobs, then those same smug self-satisfied councillors will have to answer to the voters of Pembrokeshire."