Winchester Movement Strategy

Many people are very concerned at the level of vehicle traffic in Winchester, the problems with public transport, the limited safe routes for cyclists and the difficulties of being a pedestrian, not to mention real worries about air quality. Hampshire County Council and Winchester City Council are looking to improve how people travel in and around Winchester by publishing a Movement Strategy for the City to ensure that the right travel and transport infrastructure is in place. They see this as vital to securing Winchester’s future economic growth and prosperity and making the City a healthier place to live, work and visit.

An initial public consultation took place in 2017, and the results of this, together with research and data collection in the City, have fed into an emerging strategy which aims to confirm the key priorities for movement across Winchester and to propose solutions for how these priorities could be addressed. A new public consultation into this second phase finished in January 2019, and provided an opportunity for residents, commuters, visitors, businesses and other stakeholders to put forward their views. The results of the second consultation were used to refine and finalise the Movement Strategy.

The Strategy was adopted in March 2019. Its priorities are:

1. Reducing city centre traffic

2. Supporting healthier lifestyle choices

3. Investing in infrastructure to support sustainable growth.

Hampshire County Council says, “It is a joint policy document that sets out an agreed vision and long-term priorities for travel and transport improvements in Winchester over the next 20-30 years. It also covers, at a high level, plans for how these priorities might be met, including indicative timescales and costings.”

The Trust believes that the test will be whether the measures proposed in support of the three priorities will in fact lead to a reduction in city centre traffic.  Much hope is invested, for example, in the proposal to introduce bus gates on some radial routes.  Will this reduce the number of cars entering the centre at busy times and give a clear run to buses?

The Trust joined with WinACC to hold a public meeting on 1st December 2018 on the emerging strategy which was attended by over one hundred people. Click here for a full report of the meeting.

The images below were produced by Winchester architects Design Engine to show what pedestrianising streets in the City Centre might look like. Let us know what you think!

Images © Design Engine