Buckinghamshire Council is working to improve parking within Chesham Town Centre
Between October 2024 and April 2025, the council consulted on the introduction or amendment of restrictions to allow non-goods vehicles to access the pedestrian zones to make deliveries and collections during certain hours of the day.
The consultation was carried out during an ‘Experimental Traffic Regulation Order’. This approach provided a ‘real-world’ testing period.
At the end of January, Buckinghamshire Council launched a second informal consultation regarding the completion of all the associated signage and road markings within Chesham Town Centre. This consultation (which closed on Monday 16 February) was not about amending the existing Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO). The traffic restrictions which have already been introduced under the ETRO will remain exactly as they are today, and these arrangements have been operating effectively during the trial period.
As part of the ETRO process, the council continually reviews how the scheme is working before deciding whether it should be made permanent or withdrawn. During this review, we identified a small number of signage elements from the original design that were not installed at the start of the scheme. These included new pedestrian zone signs and signage for the shared taxi/loading bay near Nationwide.
These signs have now been installed to ensure the scheme properly reflects what was originally intended. Because they are newly displayed signs, we offered a short three-week opportunity for residents and businesses to share any additional comments. This is not a full statutory consultation, but a routine step allowed under the ETRO process so we can be transparent about any refinements made.
Steve Bowles, Buckinghamshire Council's Cabinet Member for Communities commented:
“We recognise that the newly displayed signs may have caused some confusion in Chesham, with some people viewing them as “new” changes. Despite some misleading information being shared by external parties over this issue, please note that this is not the case. To ensure transparency, the latest consultation provided local residents and businesses an additional three-week period to share their thoughts with us on regulations set out in the original 6-month consultation but only actioned more recently.
“The purpose of the Chesham ETRO is to allow greater flexibility to the High Street for all users, enable a wider range of vehicles to access the high street for delivered at specified times, introduce fully pedestrianised spaces at key times, providing pedestrians with an enhanced and safer High Street experience and support greater alfresco dining opportunities for food and beverage businesses. This arrangement has been in place since November 2024. There is no intention of making any significant changes as part of this latest consultation to the parking and access arrangements which are already in place.
“Acknowledgement, careful analysis, and consideration of all comments and feedback received during the consultation will inform the decision on whether to make the order permanent or withdraw it. This decision is expected in March 2026.”
The consultation also seeks feedback on a proposed event permit for the town. The proposal is to offer an optional package that market traders and event organisers may choose to use. It is not mandatory, and organisers may still request suspensions or dispensations individually if preferred. The rationale is to give organisers a more streamlined, simplified option should they wish to use it.