The row over plans to pedestrianise High Petergate, in York city centre, will go to a public inquiry in October.

City of York Council wants to bring the road into line with many other city centre streets where pedestrians are given top priority over motorists.

But its scheme to ban traffic at busy times of the day has been vigorously opposed by some businesses and residents.

They say access and convenient parking are essential to the city centre's survival in the face of competition from out-of-town shopping centres.

Jeweller Tim Foster said people using the one-hour waiting facility in High Petergate did so because they had business to do in the city. "Deny them this facility, and it is probable that they will go elsewhere," he said. The proposal to ban cyclists as well as cars has also upset the Cyclists' Touring Club, which carried out a leafleting campaign as it lobbied to keep High Petergate open to bikes.

Spokesman Paul Hepworth said that, though motor vehicles should be banned from the street, cyclists should not.

"We believe there are good reasons for exempting cyclists from the ban on traffic. The proposed diversionary route around St Leonard's Place is one of the most polluted in the city."

He welcomed the inquiry, saying: "We are very pleased that the council has decided to go for a public inquiry in the light of the number of objections."

The council has defended the decision to exclude cyclists, saying that the safety of pedestrians must be a priority and cyclists only faced a short detour or could simply get off their bikes and walk.

Martin Brumby, chairman of the city centre planning and transport committee, said last year: "I think the amount of inconvenience to cyclists is trivial to be honest, compared with the risk of flattening somebody on the footstreet."

He also spoke out about the cost of an inquiry to the taxpayer, which he estimated would come to about £10,000.

The public inquiry begins on Tuesday, October 12, in York's De Grey Rooms, and is expected to last three days.

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