Station Forecourt and Fisherton Gateway revamp: What you said

Wiltshire Council has published a report on the feedback received from residents, businesses and other organisations during a consultation into the Future High Streets funded schemes.

A total of 179 completed questionnaires and 20 emails and written submissions were received in response to the consultation - containing a total of 862 comments.

Funding for the project 

Wiltshire Council has been awarded £9,355,731 funding from central government under the Future High Streets Fund (FHSF) to develop three projects in the city.

These projects include redesigning the Station Forecourt making it more attractive and accessible for visitors and residents and Fisherton Gateway improvements to the road network and public spaces along South Western Road and Fisherton Street.

The third project, Heritage Living, which is not being consulted on yet, proposes redeveloping a vacant listed building and creating apartments in unoccupied spaces above shops.

Schemes being proposed 

Station Forecourt

There would be improvements to bus stops, better access for pedestrians and cyclists and bicycle parking.

The roundabout on Mill Road would continue to be the entrance and exit to the car park.

The right hand side of the forecourt would be taken up by a new bus interchange with three new bus shelters for more long distance services.

There would be a shared use path providing improved access from Churchfields and Mill Road.

Fisherton Gateway

Options for Fisherton Street would benefit from improved pedestrian areas and footways will be widened.

As part of the proposals there would also be continuous footways at junctions providing a level crossing and giving pedestrians priority.

Options are being proposed for the crossing on South Western Road.

What people said

During the consultation 18 comments were in support of the schemes.

Sixteen felt they would create a “more welcoming and enjoyable environment” while 16 said the proposals didn’t go far enough and more “radical and adventurous” proposals are required.

Eleven called for more to be done to reduce the volume of cars and traffic.

Eight comments dubbed the proposals a “waste of money” and felt the money would be better spent elsewhere.

And six comments suggested the proposals would increase journey times and cause congestion.

Concerns were also raised over an increase in pollution and calls to make areas more cycle friendly.

Others said the proposals would reduce the number of cars using the town centre as a through route.

Station Forecourt 

Sixteen comments called for the northern entrance to be reopened which was also requested in Salisbury City Council’s response.

A number of comments said there was a need for more pick up/drop off car parking spaces as well as concerns about the lack of parking spaces and that the 20-minute car parking spaces should be kept.

Nine commenters said the improvements to the station forecourt were "definitely needed". 

There were also calls for more bus services to connect to the station.

Survey response 

Summing up the views of survey respondents, the report said: “The majority of respondents considered that the proposals for the station forecourt, South Western Road and Fisherton Street would improve conditions for pedestrians, cyclists, bus passengers and disabled or less mobile people.

"However, most considered that the conditions would not be improved for motorists and were uncertain as to whether the proposals would benefit delivery or HGV drivers."

South Western Road options 

The survey responses did not demonstrate a clear preference for the location of the pedestrian crossing on South Western Road - 50 per cent wanted to see the pedestrian crossing relocated towards the station. Four commenters felt this would encourage more people to cross dangerously by not using the crossing.

While 48 per cent were in favour of keeping it in its current location and increasing the width to 5m. Comments said this would better serve pedestrians travelling along Fisherton Street.

Five people considered that both pedestrian crossings should be provided.

And 36 per cent wanted parking retained with dropped kerb to allow use by pedestrians when not used for parking with 22 per cent choosing the option that parking be retained and restricted to night time use only.

The bigger majority, 40 per cent, wanted parking removed to widen the footway.

Fisherton Gateway 

In relation to Fisherton Street, 46 per cent were in favour of having bus stops opposite each other. While 27 per cent wanted the outbound bus stops retained in the current location and 25 per opted for outbound bus stop located next to the buildout. 

Nine comments received were in support of the Fisherton Street proposals to create wider pavements and prioritise pedestrians, cyclists and buses. 

Some also raised congestion concerns regarding the disruption to traffic.

What's next 

Cllr Dr Mark McClelland, Wiltshire Council's cabinet member for transport, said: "We are pleased with the number of responses received and that it's generally very positive on the projects presented to the local community. As stated in our Business Plan, we aim to create and support vibrant town centres that help the local economy and encourage the growth of business activity in a sustainable way, which these projects will help us to do."

"The next step is for the project teams to consider the responses and use them to develop detailed designs for the two schemes, before sharing these with local people once again," he added. 

Click here to read the report and find out more about the projects.