Rushed through Parliament for the Tour de France, the law on road closures for sporting events gives local people little opportunity to object, say Charles Auld & Kate Harrington
The Old Duke in the heart of Bristol is known for its jazz, both on weekdays and Sunday lunchtime. So lunchtime on Sunday, 20 August 2017 should have been jazz as usual. But it wasn’t quite as usual, because all the roads around the Old Duke had been closed. Unable to get there by car, the band members had to improvise. Some, of course, could carry their instruments, but the double bass player had to go out and buy ‘bass buggy’ wheels and the drummer did not make it at all, as he recognised that there was no way that he could carry his drum kit to the pub.
And why were the roads around the Old Duke closed? Because the local traffic authority had made an order closing them to enable a recreational bike ride, sponsored by a large high street bank, to take place on closed roads.
Anaemic regulation
Across Britain, public highways are being closed
