ABOUT ST IVES TOWN DEAL LOW CARBON TRANSPORT STRATEGY
The St Ives Low Carbon Transport Strategy is being funded and delivered as part of the St Ives Town Deal programme to help reduce the impact of vehicles on St Ives and introduce measures that encourage walking, cycling and the use of public transport.
The project has been allocated £5.5 million of Town Deal funding to create a Low Transport Environment (LTE) within the town centre by reducing traffic, enhancing safety, increasing accessibility, improving environmental health and delivering community and economic benefits. This funding needs to be spent by March 2026. Longer term measures will need to be funded from other sources.
One of the nine Town Deal projects being funded and delivered as part of the St Ives Town Deal programme, the aim of the Low Carbon Transport Strategy is to help reduce the impact of vehicles on St Ives and introduce measures that encourage walking, cycling and the use of public transport.
These include proposals aimed at reducing traffic congestion and parking demand in the town centre, enhancing public transport options and accessibility, improving air quality and health outcomes for residents and visitors and supporting local businesses by creating a more attractive and vibrant town.
You can view details of the original draft Strategy here
You can view a short video about the Strategy
LATEST PROJECT NEWS
Update on Tempest Roundabout works
Work to provide new signs and landscaping around Tempest Roundabout near Lelant will begin on Monday, 19 January.
Following improvements to the Park and Ride at St Erth, the existing signage at the Tempest Roundabout has become outdated.
The scheme includes the renewal of existing road markings and removal of the outdated signs.
These are being replaced by new signs directing drivers to St Ives via the B3311 and towards St Erth Park and Ride instead of Lelant Saltings Station. These changes will support the wider traffic management strategy which is being developed for the town and help ease the pressure on the wider local road network at peak times.
New plants are also being added to the flowerbeds and grassy areas around the roundabout.
The scheme, which is being carried out by Cormac, is due to be completed by Friday, 30 January.
Trial of new road layout now in operation in St Ives
Changes to the current road layout on Tregenna Hill in the centre of St Ives are now in operation.
This means that only buses, cyclists and emergency services (including lifeboat crews on active duty) are now permitted to drive northbound down Tregenna Hill from The Terrace. All traffic can still drive southbound up Tregenna Hill.
You can watch a short video about the trial here
The general removal of northbound traffic down Tregenna Hill will reduce the current delays, impact and congestion created by vehicles having to navigate past each other in a highly constrained space. The changes will also make it easier for buses, lorries and other large vehicles to get around the narrow points and corners along the route.
There are currently numerous daily conflicts between vehicles and pedestrians using this stretch of road. Previous community consultations have identified this area as one of the main highway concerns for the local community, but it is also one of the more complex environments to implement an effective solution.
Following significant appraisal, technical assessment and broad engagement, a new road layout has been designed.
The aim of the trial, which is being implemented via an ‘Experimental Traffic Regulation Order’ (ETRO), is to improve traffic flow and reduce these daily conflicts.
While the trial alone is unlikely to reduce the overall amount of traffic at Library Corner, ensuring that general traffic is only flowing in one direction will significantly reduce the opportunity for conflicts to occur. This will create a more controlled environment and provide a safer space for all users in and around Library Corner.
The changes will also support the broader aims of the Town Deal Transport Strategy and the creation of a Low Traffic Environment in the town centre.
New signs have been installed at key roads and junctions informing drivers of the changes and new restrictions and providing details of alternative routes into and out of St Ives. .
Other measures which have been introduced as part of this trial include making Albert Road one-way inbound, improving the flow of traffic and reducing traffic congestion and delays, introducing an entry restriction on the western end of Dove Street and a mandatory left turn at Street-an-pol. There is also no right turn at the bottom of Bedford Road.
The direction of the existing one-way at Park Avenue has also been reversed, allowing inbound traffic only towards Bullans Lane and the Doctors surgery. This will help to keep traffic moving along this route, reducing the numbers of queuing stationary vehicles.
This change is intended to deliver several specific benefits for residents of Park Avenue including:
The change to the traffic flow along Park Avenue will also help to reduce a potential network pressure up over the Burrows to the Stennack, past Trenwith Car Park and Leisure Centre, as a consequence of the proposed trial changes.
By providing a route for local traffic, the reversal will help maintain a balance of vehicles on the road network in this part of the town. This will be closely monitored throughout the trial.
The use of an ETRO means that Cornwall Council as Highways Authority can make modifications throughout the trial period, responding agilely to specific issues or concerns that are observed.
This will provide a greater chance for success, with both community feedback and engineer analysis shaping the ultimate decision making as to whether the trialled changes are made permanent or not.
A specific Tregenna Hill ETRO webpage has been set up on Let’s Talk Cornwall to provide information about the trial and enable people to raise feedback throughout the trial period.
You can visit the page here :
Regular updates will be posted throughout the trial.
The project team are encouraging feedback from all sectors of the local community, as well as visitors to the town, during the trial to enable the performance of the scheme to be fully determined.
This feedback, along with active monitoring by transport engineers, will be used to shape the decision on a permanent scheme.
The ETRO has been developed by Cornwall Council in partnership with St Ives Town Deal Board, with technical expertise provided by Cormac.
Engagement with key stakeholders, including St Ives Town Council, transport operators and providers and emergency services, influenced the development of the new road layout which is now being trialled.
The trial is being funded through the St Ives Low Carbon Transport Strategy and will remain in place for at least six months but could extend up to 18 months before a final decision is made.
Update on Malakoff
Work on the final phase of the scheme to improve the Malakoff open space in St Ives began in October 2025.
The first phase, which included the creation of a new bus layby and footway was completed earlier in 2025. Repairs have also been carried out on the car park steps and nearby parapet wall which were damaged by vehicle collisions.
The project team worked with stakeholders and the local community to finalise the designs for the second phase of the scheme which includes the provision of a new bus shelter, seating, paving and landscaping.
Construction is expected to take up to six months to complete.
The first stage, which was being carried out between October and Christmas, saw work taking place to clear the site and install new drainage and structural foundations.
A new bespoke bus shelter will then be constructed, together with new granite paving, bespoke granite planters and benches, new street furniture, a new millwheel feature and lighting.
Once the iconic sculpture Epidauros II by Dame Barbara Hepworth, which was temporarily relocated to the Penwith Gallery during the works, has been returned to its rightful home at the Malakoff, the area will be fully resurfaced.
Update on Higher Stennack scheme
Plans to improve the area at Higher Stennack to make it safer for pedestrians to cross the road have been finalised following consultations with the local community.
The improvements at Higher Stennack include the installation of an informal crossing point between the mini-roundabouts, providing a new seating and cycle parking area and replacing one set of speed cushions with a flat top hump to make it easier to cross the road at this point.
The scheme also involves moving two streetlights to ensure signs are visible and open up more space for pedestrians, replacing the paving at crossing points with dropped kerbs and installing correctly aligned tactile paving. These changes will help people with visual impairments and make it easier and safer for those with pushchairs or in wheelchairs to cross the road.
Work is also progressing well on developing the other schemes within the Low Carbon Transport Strategy.
Following the completion of the Terrace scheme, the improvements to Consols junction and the first phase of the Malakoff open space scheme during 2025, work has been completed on delivering the scheme to reduce traffic speeds and improve pedestrian safety at Halsetown.
The final stage of the Halsetown scheme – the resurfacing of Laity Lane – took place in Autumn 2025.
The prioritisation of the ETRO scheme has altered the original programme, moving any plans for change to the town’s car parks to at least April 2026.
Why is the Low Carbon Transport Strategy needed
The resident population of around 11,000 in St Ives increases dramatically during the summer months when more than 500,000 day visitors and 220,000 staying tourists visit the town. Currently many opt to travel into the town by car, leading to significant congestion in the narrow streets around the town centre and harbour area.
With a combination of inadequate signage and mid guided Sat Nav directions, unsafe streets caused by poor or non-existent footpaths and buses, HGV and other vehicles mounting pavements, ad hoc parking causing bottle necks, insufficient parking for residents and a lack of facilities for walking and cycling resulting in conflict and confusion within the town centre and it is clear that action needs to be taken to improve the transport infrastructure in the town.
Allocated £5.5 million of Town Deal funding, the aim of the transport project is to create a Low-Traffic Environment (LTE) in the historic core of St Ives by:
The Strategy focuses on the following key areas:
Wider strategy – aimed at reducing congestion and promoting eco-friendly transport options, the proposals include providing park and ride services outside of the town or attraction to encourage visitors and commuters to continue their journey by bus, rail, or other modes of active travel such as walking or cycling. With St Erth park and ride now at full capacity, this includes developing additional park and ride facilities at Halsetown and Splattenridden, improving navigation and signage at the Lelant Road junction to reroute traffic, enhancing parking signs and signals to direct drivers to car parks and public transport options and improving rail, bus, cycle and walling networks and gateways.
Town wide strategy – the historic town centre was not designed to accommodate the current volume of people or traffic. This currently leads to significant congestion, particularly in the peak summer months or when deliveries are loaded or unloaded. Proposals are aimed at reducing the amount of traffic going into the town centre to park by improving signage to direct people to the right locations and car parks, as well as providing more cost effective parking for long stay visitors in car parks on the edge of the town. Other proposals include providing non motorised transport options, such as bike, e-bike and shuttle bus links, adjusting bus routes, and improving walking routes and footpaths.
Town Centre and Low Traffic Environment strategy – the proposed changes in the town centre aim to reduce traffic congestion and enhance public spaces. The plan includes removing ‘honey pot’ island parking, and converting it to permit-only to reduce traffic and redefining vehicular routes to alleviate congestion, especially around Library Corner where a one-way traffic system will be introduced around the Corner and up Tregenna Hill to streamline traffic flow, facilitate better movement, and allow for the expansion of footways, thereby improving the overall pedestrian experience in the area.
Short stay car parks in the town centre will be subject to shorter, more expensive tariffs, with some on street parking for short stay, disabled visitors, residents, and loading and unloading (with the use of permits and charging where required).
The team are also looking into the use of alternative methods to discourage people without legitimate reasons from driving into the town centre during certain periods.
Some specific changes have been identified for the Higher Stennack, the Terrace and the Malakoff areas. These include removing mini roundabouts and reconfiguring junctions, updating and providing new pedestrian crossings and bus shelters; reducing the size of the carriageway and expanding footway areas, providing new facilities for secure cycling parking and bike hire, reallocating road space to prioritize non motorised users, improving signage and redirecting traffic away from the town centre and beachfront. .