The sun shone for us on Civic Day when we promoted the work of the Society to local residents and visitors to the town.

Quite a few people stopped for a chat or filled in one of our questionnaires.  Amongst the issues discussed was the state of the Civic Centre, ways to slow traffic on the High Street, whether there should be a pedestrian crossing or whether it is time to pedestrianise the High Street.  As there happened to be a wedding at the Barn, we also met a few people from other parts of the country who seemed genuinely interested in the history of the town.  We were asked about the Peel Monument and why Soaper Lane was so called.

Spending time on the High Street also gave us an idea of just how busy it is with many more vehicles than pedestrians.  Much of the traffic using High Street then turns into Soaper Lane presumably as a cut through to the main road, Dronfield Bottom or Snape Hill Lane to access the Coal Aston side of Dronfield.  We counted 42 vehicles in the space of 5 minutes on the High Street which further backs up the evidence collected by former Chairman John Fletcher of one vehicle every 6-10 seconds.

We’d like to express our thanks to the Blue Stoops for allowing us to use their car park and to the Barn for the loan of their gazebo.  Thank you to those who came along on Civic Day and shared thoughts and ideas about our town.