Councillors in Moray have decided against reintroducing traffic to the pedestrianised area of Elgin High Street.

The idea of opening up the area to vehicles in a bid to boost trade emerged from a meeting held last year as part of a redevelopment vision for the town centre.

The area around St Giles Church and stretching from Batchen Street in the west to Commerce Street in the east has been pedestrianised since 1996.

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A report to the council's economic development and infrastructure services committee said that, based on studies and on the experiences of towns elsewhere, there was no clear evidence that increasing traffic on High Street would have a positive impact on retail trade.

However, there was evidence that an increase in traffic would present a heightened risk in terms of road safety.

The report stated: "Even with significant engineering mitigation works for which there is currently no budget provision, the area would not be as safe for pedestrians as it currently is.

"On this basis the recommendation is that a trial of High Street vehicular access should not be progressed at this time."

(MH)