THE removal of safety barriers from a major Oswestry road is already underway following talks between town stakeholders.

The barriers – known as hogs – have already been taken away from The Cross end of Church Street after criticism from Oswestry Town Council, businesses and residents alike.

And now the Future Oswestry Group (FOG) – responsible for planning in the town – has added that changes to increase pedestrian space will be made permanent once the road has been resurfaced as part of wider works in September.

A FOG spokesman said: “(We have) agreed a final scheme for enhancements to Church Street.

“Church Street currently has road barriers, also known as hogs, separating the pathway and road, which were installed at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, following recovery grant funding from UK government.

“During the pandemic, Oswestry Business Improvement District (BID) committed £100,000 to fund Church Street enhancement works.

“Following recent calls from the Oswestry community to remove the hogs, the FOG has been working together to find a safe, agreeable solution.

“The final scheme has now been agreed, and some hogs have already been removed.”

Some hogs will remain close to Festival Square for traffic management, and planters will be put in position temporarily until the re-surfacing scheme is completed.

Following this, the temporary planters will be fixed into a permanent position, alongside other elements of the scheme.

Adele Nightingale, Oswestry BID manager said: “We have worked so hard to drive this project forward.

“It’s been disappointing to deal with the delays to Church Street works, and we’ve listened to businesses who have been unhappy with the current set up.

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“It’s now time to focus on delivery, and get this done for the town, as we believe the proposed plans will make a significant difference.

“We are relieved to now have the full agreement of Shropshire Council on implementation, and look forward to delivering this long-awaited, much-needed project for Oswestry.”

Councillor Robert Macey, Cabinet member for culture and digital, and member of the Future Oswestry Group said: “We’re aware the current hogs in Church Street have caused a significant amount of frustration within the Oswestry community and have dealt with the concerns with the highest priority.

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“We hope to share visualisations of what Church Street will look like after it’s resurfaced with the public soon, so that the community can look ahead and start to feel excited about the positive changes set to take place.”

Oswestry mayor Cllr Olly Rose said: “We are pleased that the hogs will be removed, and we, like residents and visitors look forward to seeing the improvements to Church Street in the coming months.”

Cllr Rose also confirmed this week that the town council’s offer of £100,000 towards the project was withdrawn as it was no longer necessary.