Councillor dismisses rumours about Sheffield Wednesday

Local residents and traders were angry after the council said it wanted to introduce no parking and road closures for match days.

A confusing traffic regulation order was sent out just days after Supertram announced it would be postponing services during the Owls’ recent match against Leeds.

The traffic and parking changes, coupled with Supertram suspending services, led to fears the club would end up leaving Hillsborough.

But Coun Bob Johnson, cabinet member for transport, has categorically denied this and says the traffic order is not as drastic as residents and traders initially feared.

“There is no interest in moving Sheffield Wednesday and as a council, this would not be anything we would be promoting,” he said.

Coun Johnson, who is a Hillsborough councillor, said he understood why people were upset when the traffic order was first issued.

“There was a misunderstanding about the timings of the road closures and it was poorly worded. People could be forgiven for thinking the road closures were for a full 12 hours but what was actually proposed was a window of closures, for a short period, to cover either afternoon or evening matches.

“At no point did we ever intend for 12-hour closures. The traffic order will just formalise what is currently in place with a few exceptions.”

The order means the council can take over enforcement from police. Penistone Road will remain closed for an hour before and after the match, as will the top half of Leppings Lane by the ground.

Residents living off Leppings Lane will be given stickers to show stewards so they can drive to their homes easily.

There will be no parking on the triangle of roads where Herries Road and Herries Road South meets Penistone Road, and Rawson Spring Road.

One of the biggest changes will be new restrictions on Catch Bar Lane and Parkside Road which will stop cars from parking on the pavement. These will be permanent, not just on match days.

Consultation on the traffic regulation order ends on Thursday, November 7.