Uncertainty surrounds Belper Christmas lights switch-on

Belper Town Council applied to close all of King Street between 4pm and 10pm on Friday, November, 27 for the switch-on event.

But this week, Derbyshire County Council has said it could not support plans – unless the event was changed to a Sunday.

Coun John Nelson, of the town council, said: “If this is the case, we will have to curtail the event drastically.”

He added that he would need to speak with the town council as a whole before making further comments.

Derbyshire County Council’s statement, issued to us today, said: “We’re not killjoys and always assist with Christmas events by supporting road closure applications where we think they are safe and appropriate...

“The event went ahead on a Friday last year and significant disruption was experienced. For this reason, we’ve made comments to Amber Valley Borough Council that we cannot support the application from event organisers for a Friday closure, because of the traffic congestion and safety problems it causes.

“Closing King Street on a Friday would mean many buses having to stop on the nearby A6 during rush hour. This would have a significant impact on traffic queues, would cause major congestion – both on the A6 and on other Belper Roads leading to the junctions.

“If the application was for a Sunday we would support the closure.”

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Let us know your views by emailing [email protected], tweeting to @BelperLatest, or join the conversation on Facebook by visiting: www.facebook.com/BelperNews