Controversial A-boards finally set for removal from narrow town centre street

A-boards on The Walk have had their day

Controversial A-boards have blighted an historical alleyway for years are finally set to be removed from a narrow street in Rochdale town centre.

Gregory Couzens, who runs a busy hair salon on The Walk, has welcomed the move after a long fight for the boards' removal.

He said: “This is wonderful news: The Walk is a conservation area and all the ‘A’ boards are illegal.

“I have never seen the virtues of any business needing one. It is a very narrow street and an obstacle course for pedestrians, parents with prams and buggies, but most important of all, the disabled, partially sighted or blind.

He added: “My business is extremely successful and has been for over 35 years, and I have never owned an ‘A’ board.

“The beautiful York stone flags are a credit towards the regeneration project and The Walk could be something unique and compliment the whole shopping experience”

A spokesperson for the council said: “The plan is to erect a finger post sign at each end of the Walk as a quid pro quo for an agreement that we have a ‘no A-boards’ zone along the entire length of The Walk.

“This will be progressed once the building works at the junction of The Walk and The Butts have been completed.

“In the interim, the town centre wardens will continue to monitor the area and ask that all business owners have a maximum of one A-board advertising their business on the highway and that all such A-boards are up against the building from which their business operates."

Neil Maver, Service Manager at Rochdale Borough Council added: “We currently restrict shops in Rochdale Town Centre to no more than one A-board each to help them advertise their business. All businesses are required to place the A-boards up against the building from which their businesses operates to help reduce obstructions. As The Walk is particularly narrow, we will be reviewing our A-board policy in this area once the work on The Walk and the Butts has been completed.”

The Walk is not the only street in Rochdale Town Centre to be covered with A boards, as over 30 boards can be counted from the bottom of Yorkshire Street to Baillie Street. 

Both streets are encompassed within a conservation area boundary, which are required by local authorities to survey under The Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.