TEMPORARY barriers that widened pavements within the Royal Borough to support social distancing during the pandemic will be removed.

The council has announced these measures are no longer deemed necessary following the ease of Covid-19 restrictions.

The temporary scheme, which was government-funded, was put in place at the end of the first lockdown in Spring 2020 to add more social distancing on pavements as shoppers, commuters, pedestrians, and cyclists returned to town centres.

Measures that were for social distancing purposes, including pavement widening on Queen Street, Broadway and York Road in Maidenhead and Thames Street, High Street, Datchet Road, River Street and Thames Avenue in Windsor, will be removed in the coming weeks.

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Those being retained include changes to the speed limits in both Windsor and Maidenhead from 30mph to 20mph, which will become permanent. Significant cycle parking in both Maidenhead and Windsor town centres will also be retained, along with cycle lanes in Maidenhead High Street.

Councillor Phil Haseler (Con: Cox Green), cabinet member for planning, parking, highways, and transport, said: “Following a review after the lifting of restrictions nationally, and with town centres now successfully re-opened, those temporary measures that are no longer required will be removed.

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“These were always intended as temporary measures, with a focus on social distancing. We remain committed to Active Travel in the borough through our Cycling Action Plan 2018. Over the course last summer, a ‘Big Conversation’ took place with residents across our borough to further develop our plans. This will be captured through a Local Walking and Cycling Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP) which will review longer-term solutions for cycling and walking with local consultations helping us find the most appropriate solutions.”

It is the council’s intention to adopt the LCWIP as soon as possible in the new financial year, creating a roadmap of schemes for further investigation and, following public consultation, implementation to make cycling and walking safer and more appealing.