A more pedestrian friendly Hockley?

Where we were

Not that long ago Hockley was a very different place with cars parked on either side of the street, and through traffic from cars and heavy vehicles 24/7.

Where we are now

We’ve come a long way. Hockley is a varied and exciting area of the city, full of fantastic independent retailers and businesses, and high quality cafés and restaurants.

Bollards were installed to make the area more pedestrian friendly, removing through traffic between 6pm and 6am, making the area safer.

This year’s extraordinary summer demonstrated the true potential of the area; warmer weather and less traffic leading to a buzzing café culture, with greater footfall for shops.

But could it have been even better? There is less traffic in the area but some car drivers and a lot of delivery vehicles are still parking on the streets and pavements during the day which can be off-putting for visitors.

Where we go next...

The City Council, working with the Creative Quarter, want to encourage more people to discover and enjoy all the area has to offer.

To do this there is a proposal to extend the times of the day when the area is closed to traffic, in stages, starting with lunchtime, to create an even safer, even more attractive environment.