Tenby councillors have suggested that the pedestrianisation scheme be extended this year further into the evening, to help businesses and shops in the town who have missed out on weeks of trading.

The summer pedestrianisation scheme will begin on Monday (July 6) and will operate daily between 11 am and 5.30 pm until Friday, September 11.

The scheme will again see the town divided into three zones with each zone allowing different levels of vehicle access.

However, as current Covid-19 guidance and regulations do not permit for ‘Café Culture’ at this present time, businesses being able to put chairs and tables outside their premises has been placed on hold, until the Welsh Government allow for this.

Temporary signage will be provided throughout Tenby regarding Covid-19 guidance relating to staying safe and maintaining social distancing, and retail businesses will be able to take advantage of a traffic free environment for the purpose of customer queuing, where appropriate.

Discussing the scheme at Tuesday night’s remote meeting of Tenby Town Council, members stated that it would be beneficial to businesses, if they could sound out Pembrokeshire County Council about the possibilities of extending pedestrianisation (and subsequently Café Culture when allowed) to 8 pm in the evening.

Speaking on the matter after the meeting, the town clerk Andrew Davies stated: “The reasoning is, if the five mile travel restriction is lifted and the holiday accommodation sector is opened up by the Welsh Government, as anticipated, a traffic free environment will allow more space for retail premises to implement, and for the public to observe social distancing measures, for example when queuing for entry.

“This will also be of benefit to those retail premises which open later in the evenings during the summer months.

“When Café Culture is allowed, the ability for cafes and restaurants to serve in the open air later in the evening will also allow for potential visitors to be dissipated around various establishments in a socially distanced manner.

“We feel that this will help avoid the potential for public open spaces, like the harbour, beaches and public gardens to become overcrowded by visitors eating take-away food and the resultant littering issues witnessed elsewhere in the UK.

“Further ways we can protect the community while also assisting the local economy are going to be discussed at a Tenby Regeneration Team meeting being arranged,” added Mr. Davies.