Shropshire to rip out £3.8m floating bus stop four months after opening

Shropshire Council is set to remove the floating bus stop and cycle lane at the Castle Foregate station gyratory in Shrewsbury, in a significant change of direction for one of the most debated transport schemes delivered under the town’s Big Town Plan.

The decision marks an important moment for local authority transport delivery, particularly as councils across the UK balance active travel ambitions with network performance, accessibility and public confidence. The Castle Foregate scheme, delivered as part of a £3.8 million redesign funded through the Levelling Up Fund in 2023, has faced sustained criticism from residents, businesses, disability groups, public transport operators and emergency services since becoming operational in October 2025.

Shropshire Council has voted to remove the current layout, with officers now assessing the cost of dismantling the recently installed infrastructure before Cabinet decides on a final replacement design. The original scheme reduced two traffic lanes to one and introduced a short section of cycle lane alongside a floating bus stop. According to the source material, the bus stop island measures around 1.1 metres wide, well below the 2.5 metre minimum recommended in Department for Transport cycle infrastructure guidance LTN 1/20.

The scheme has also raised wider questions about design assurance and governance in local highways projects. Shropshire Council’s own scrutiny process reportedly concluded that the project proceeded without sufficient governance, evaluation or consultation. A Stage 3 Road Safety Audit was received by the council in March 2026 but had not been published at the time of the statement, adding to calls for greater transparency around decision-making and post-construction review.

Operational concerns quickly emerged once the layout was in use. Arriva Midlands suspended use of the stop within a month, citing safety concerns. Emergency access also became a major issue, with the chair of Shropshire Fire and Rescue Authority previously telling a scrutiny committee that the arrangement was “putting lives and property at risk”. The debate underlines a growing sector focus on ensuring that street design changes support not only mode shift and place-making, but also bus reliability, inclusive access and network resilience.

The political response has been strong, with a petition attracting 7,250 signatures. Independent traffic monitoring referenced in the source material also points to a measurable effect on traffic conditions. Telraam sensor data comparing November to December 2024 with the same period in 2025 suggests the peak-hour V85 speed fell from 22.9mph to 16.1mph, a reduction of 29.6%. Over the same period, the proportion of vehicles travelling at under 12mph during peak hours increased from 28% to 55%.

Cllr Brendan Mallon, Shropshire Reform UK Deputy Group Leader, said:

“This a sorry tale of disastrous public spending of huge sums on a project that was of dubious value, much like the similarly funded White Elephant that is the Riverside project. The cycle lane was an abject failure of concept and design. It did not effectively link up with the existing cycle network and the planned extension into the heart of the town had to be terminated as they realised how unsafe it was after they had already commenced construction.”

For the wider highways sector, the Shrewsbury reversal highlights the importance of aligning scheme design with national guidance, carrying out robust consultation and testing how new layouts will operate in live conditions. As local authorities continue to invest in active travel and urban highway improvements, the industry will be watching closely to see how Shropshire Council reshapes the gyratory and what lessons the project offers for future town-centre transport schemes.