Enforcement cameras to ensure motorists stop driving on a town centre’s main street are being switched on. Drivers of private cars face receiving a £70 fine if they drive up Market Jew Street in Penzance, Cornwall, between the hours of 11:00 and 16:00, Cornwall Council told the BBC.

Highways News reported last week that the cameras were being installed.

The order to stop cars driving had been in place since 2022, but recent analysis showed an average of 600 cars a day were breaching the rules, it added.

Some businesses disagree with the move, with one shop owner saying it is “not needed” to prevent motorists from using the street. Cornwall Council said “a large number of people” were continuing “to flout the restrictions, which creates some real safety concerns”.

Sarah Shaw, manager of the business improvement district (BID) that represents shops, said:

“Over the summer, we used a counter to measure the number of cars driving up the street and it was an average of 600 cars. That’s two per minute.

“We’re trying to create at atmosphere where people stay longer in the town and that number of cars is just not tenable.

“It’s been a turbulent couple of years with road closures and roadworks, but we’re at the end of it now and I hope people rediscover Penzance.”

Dan Rogerson, Cornwall Council’s portfolio holder for transport, said:

“The restrictions were put in place as party of the Penzance Healthy Streets project, and have helped create a much more pleasant environment for shoppers and visitors.

“However, there are a large number of people who continue to flout the restrictions, which creates some real safety concerns.

“We have consulted widely on this scheme, and people have strongly supported our aim of making the town centre more accessible and a more pleasant place to visit, and these cameras will help deliver those changes.”

(Picture: Mapillary)