For the second week running our desperate local rag The Gazelle & Herod have kicked Devizes town centre while it’s on its knees. We say, no, stop it, it’s naughty, and sensationalising only for paper sales and clickbait; Devizes is open, thriving and a wonderful place to visit…. as it always was.
You can monotonously rant your presumptions on umpteen “British nostalgia” Facebook pages that the country is in ruins and is now not a patch of its former self, because of whatever political faction you abhorrent and blame, or ordinary folk from overseas seeking a better life you take for granted. You can whinge there that shops are closing and the High Street is doomed until you’re triggered in so much self-pity your rose-tinted specs drop into your jug of Château Cheval Blanc. But, by comparison with the nation’s empty shopping malls and dilapidated high streets, Devizes is punching above its weight. We have a great cafe culture, we have independent shops, we have talented folk putting on theatrical shows and live music, and we have an aesthetically pleasing relatively trouble-free town centre steeped in history and legends.
But the front page this week suggests the fate of Devizes town centre is in doubt, when all that’s really happening is the Town Council are to include a discussion on the town centre and Market Place, at their next monthly meeting, to see if anything needs improvement; nothing usually comes out of these discussions other than some oversized flowerpots! It’s not broken, it doesn’t need fixing, and it’s likely the council will conclude this is the case.
Last week they splashed the story of how Police now have powers to issue ASBOs to a few “undesirables” loitering around the town centre, drinking, all across the front page. Whilst I’m pleased, of course, that anyone causing other folk troubles will be dealt with, it makes me wonder if it’s as serious an issue that it’s highlighted to be. For whether it is being dealt with, or not, it is still creating a potentially damaging image of Devizes by raising attention to the issue and bringing this false ideology to the forefront of people’s minds that the town is Wiltshire’s answer to Tijuana, and if you go there you’ll be mugged for your Greggs sausage roll, which you know as well as I, this simply isn’t true.
I find myself contemplating if the few people sitting around the Market Place are actually causing as regular disturbances as it claimed. They could be, they equally could not be. I’ve certainly not seen any more trouble there than any other town centre, not even near it, and therein lies my reasoning to rant on the topic. If you want antisocial behaviour, take a look at how we drive through town!
Every town centre has antisocial loiterers, every town centre has congestion, or problems with closing shops or elements in need of replacing. What are you going to do? Stay in forever, with Netflix, worrying about it? Shop online? When the chain reaction of this is the root to the very problems you fear, the problems media is sensationalising! I look at local town centres and see the same thing happening, everywhere; why the need to single out Devizes when really the problem here isn’t even in the same ballpark as others I could mention, but wouldn’t, because it would be as damaging as the negative image the local newspaper seems to want to project of Devizes?
But the real sour cherry on the doggie doing cake is that this slander could not have come at a more inappropriate time. Right now, Devizes NEEDS your support, shopkeepers, landlords and the community as a whole need you to visit.
Since the terrible fire a few weeks ago and consequently access to the Market Place closed to vehicles from the Northgate side to ensure safety, the town is feeling inevitable repercussions. In light of the tragedy, the majority acted faithfully in compliance, we accepted congestion would increase, and planned our journey times better. But traffic is easing now, in fact the closure of the Market Place at Northgate (which we must add is only to vehicles, NOT pedestrians) has quickened the pace of flow at the Brewery roundabout from New Park Street, despite it affecting the amount of traffic using it and the temporary bus stops. I’ve said before, replacing that roundabout with traffic lights and a box junction could ease congestion, but what do I know?
We cannot discredit the fact this may be so because less are inclined to pass through Devizes, but mostly I believe this can be turned around once it is reopened, provided negative images cast upon the town are not believed and savoured. Plus, it is more likely because we’ve come to terms that we must all use New Park Street and have applied some defensive driving measures; vital to keep traffic flowing. It is not the traffic lights at fault, rather the attitude we take to driving through town.
The solution to easing traffic is as simple as turning a frown upside down; it is driving with consideration for others, as it will help you out in the end too. I illustrate my point with my journey back from town this morning, at around 7am. I’m planning to turn right at Shane’s Castle to take the Chippenham road, but the traffic is nose-to-tail due to the traffic lights at the roadworks on Prison Bridge turning green in the coming into town direction. It is not the traffic light at fault, it’s only changing colour, it’s only programmed to change colour, that is its only function and purpose. It’s the drivers causing the issue, as not one car would consider slowing to allow a gap for me to turn right, when any of them could have, and this would have allowed cars to travel downhill to the lights. In theory it would not have impacted their journey time, because the traffic is flowing less than the speed limit and any car could have easily caught up with the race in seconds.
But so many drivers cannot seem to see the consequence of this, they are driving in an offensive manner rather than a defensive one; an inconsiderate trait that impacts them too rather than helps. You see, because I’m waiting to turn right, vehicles are building up behind me, and there’s only one car down the hill at the lights. The lights turn green this side, and I can finally turn right. Now the cars behind me must decide if they should race for the green light in icy and foggy conditions or be stopped by the light changing back to red.
It’s rush hour, and they dive into their cars like headless chickens, with a do or die attitude, running late, because an unexpected frosty morning caused them to have to run their engine for a half hour, to save a spray of de-icer. It’s an everyman for themselves tenet which will inevitably backfire. I found myself wondering how many people will need to turn right at the junction in the next hour, it is a busy route after all. If each time they do, a backlog of traffic builds up behind it, consequently only allowing a few cars to make it to the lights before they turn red again, will undoubtedly in time cause a domino effect further into town, and traffic will be queuing by eight o’clock, at every other roundabout and junction; QED. So, while the traffic coming into town saved a car length by not giving way to cars like mine trying to turn right at Shane’s Castle, their actions have found them stuck further down the line.
You should note, Station Road is now open again, so you can get around the Market Place that way and save yourself a few seconds. Top secret leaked info that one, as while it seems Devizes Town Council has made no announcement of this on their Facebook page, certain Facebook groups with a penchant to ban anyone who doesn’t agree with the political opinion of the admin are the only ones in the know; that is the very same selective and insular “every man for themselves” attitude we must avoid as the driving like a muppet one, if we are to paint a better picture for our town than the journalists are delivering for sales.
For while yes, perhaps these news items need to be published, there’s no need for them to be lead stories splashed across the front page when there’s plentiful positive stories with feelgood factors, locally, of more importance and interest. So, put them inside the paper, small mentions, and counteract them with said positive news that project all the good happenings in towns like Devizes, because there really is, but you’re not reading about them because all you read about is how bad things are, and that is damaging everyone struggling to uphold a business here.
Just stop, slow down, consider the lilies, consider each other! It’s the Winter Festival tomorrow, lantern parade, Christmas market and lights being switched on. No doubt you will be in the Market Place, enjoying the festivities, drinking mulled wine, but will you be back next week, believing what you read and frowning at the few folk drinking there?! Or will you say, “you know what? In the grand scheme of things, Devizes is a great place to live,” avoid media persuasion and general silliness, drive with consideration, shop here, doing your bit to make it so? Devizes is open, thriving and a wonderful place to visit…. as it always was.
Jolly good show, carry on….
devizine.com 