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Unenforced bus gate to be removed

Elliot Deady/BBC A road with "bus only" markings on the ground. There is one 20mph (32km/h) sign on either side of the road. On the right hand side there is a round blue sign with graphics of a motorbike, bicycle, bus, and the word "taxi".Elliot Deady/BBC
The bus gate in Olympic Boulevard, Colchester, was installed in 2015

A bus gate that has never been on a bus route looks set to be removed nine years after it was installed, a council said.

Essex County Council documents suggested the bus gate in Olympic Boulevard, Colchester, could be replaced by "no entry" signs in both directions, despite no bus route running there.

A Freedom of Information request made by the Daily Gazette last year revealed no fines had been handed out since the bus gate, which is a short section of road that only buses and authorised vehicles can go through, was introduced in 2015.

Friday is the last day residents can send comments or objections on the proposal to the council.

Elliot Deady/BBC A bus stop with three cars and one van parked across it. The bus stop is painted on the road outside a row of terraced houses.Elliot Deady/BBC
Drivers often park their cars in bus stops along Olympic Boulevard

The council said it was introducing the no entry restrictions to stop Olympic Boulevard being used as a through road by motorists.

Bus services had previously been proposed but were not progressing, it continued.

The proposal also included plans to introduce parking restrictions along some stretches of the road, which connects Via Urbis Romanae and Mill Road in the Mile End area of the city.

Bus stops were painted on the road several years ago, which some drivers park over given the lack of a bus route.

If the plans proceed, Essex County Council will reduce the speed limit on Olympic Boulevard and nine surrounding roads to 20mph (32km/h).

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