‘Shared space’ plans for Moseley to be revealed at public meeting

Leading street designer Paola Spivach of Hamilton-Baillie Associates will address a public meeting held next Tuesday (12 May) at St Columba Church in Moseley to discuss proposals to introduce the controversial ‘shared space’ scheme in the area.

Moseley Forum, the neighbourhood forum for Moseley, has commissioned Hamilton-Baillie Associates to investigate the feasibility of using shared space principles to transform the centre of Moseley into a pedestrian friendly area.  Ms Spivach will present proposals including a detailed plan and artist’s impressions of the transformation at the meeting.

Shared space, described by Ms Spivach as a “streetscape enhancement”, involves removing barriers between road and pavement traffic. In practice this means the removal of almost all road signs from an area and potentially the lowering of kerbstones to road level.

The guiding principle of shared space, according to Hamilton-Baillie Associates, is the introduction of ‘self-regulation’.  The system has already been applied successfully in the UK in Kensington High Street and in several towns in the Netherlands but there are concerns over the practicalities of using shared space in an area with as much traffic as Moseley.

However, Moseley Forum’s Chairman David Isgrove is keen to build on the success of the monthly Moseley farmer’s market which claims back part of the road in St Mary’s Row, Moseley, to accommodate stalls on market days.

David Isgrove said: “Shared space is a very interesting concept and something which could work in Moseley. We [Moseley] would like to be a pilot project for Birmingham.”

Ben Hamilton-Baillie the founder of Hamilton-Baillie Associates was recently asked to speak to Birmingham City Councils Transport scrutiny committee about the scheme where he faced opposition from chief highways engineer John Blakemore, who told the committee there could be legal problems if the council simply pulls back from regulating the flow of traffic.

Tuesday's meeting (12th May) will be held at St Columba Church Hall, Moseley, B13 8DJ (on the corner of Alcester Road and Chantry Road) and begins at 7.30pm