THE PEOPLE of Callington will be asked their views later this month on a new one-way system and traffic management scheme for the town.

Callington Town Council, which has been trying to get a one-way system in place for a decade, is delighted that improvements — which it hopes will encourage people to shop in the town — are at last coming to fruition.

The proposals include making Church Street one-way up and Well Street one-way down; partially pedestrian-isation the eastern end of Fore Street by the traffic lights with only buses having access; installing a pedestrian crossing at the junction of Tavistock Road and the A388; widening footways; increasing the number of on-street parking and loading bays and putting in cycle stands.

Cornwall councillor Andrew Long said the town council had been waiting a long time for this to happen.

'Ten years ago there was a big argument between the town council and the then county council about which way the traffic should go,' said Mr Long. 'We could not agree and it didn't happen.

'We have continued to push for a solution and in recent years it has been a case of not having the money because it is going to cost in the region of £140,000 to £150,000. When Tesco expressed an interest in coming to the town we saw it as an ideal opportunity to get this work done through the Section 106 agreement.'

A condition of planning permission for the new Tesco store in Tavistock Road, which opened three weeks ago, was that the company contributed money to road improvements in the town. Unfortunately delays in planning have meant that the scheme did not come on-line when Tesco opened as originally intended but Mr Long said he hoped now it would move on as quickly as possible.

'We think the improvements will make Callington much safer for drivers and pedestrians and better for shoppers,' he added.

'We have tried to protect the businesses in the town by preventing Tesco, through the legal agreement, from selling electrical items and having a pharmacy, and with better on-street parking we hope more people will come into the town and use the shops.

'The scheme will also make the bottom end of Church Street safer because it is currently a death trap.'

Project engineer for Cornwall council Alistair Uglow said the consultation period would be a minimum of three weeks and the work would be completed by March 2011.

He said details of the consultation had not been finalised but he expected it to start at the end of the month and the town council was keen to use the town hall as a viewing area for the plans.

'We want as many people as possible to comment and there will be a questionnaire for people to fill in,' said Mr Uglow.

'This scheme has its origins at a local level rather than being something that the local community feel is being imposed on them from outside.

'I am confident that it will be popular and we want it to be a success.

'There is no substitute for local knowledge and the public consultation is a means by where we can glean suggestions from people who live and work in the town.'