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Retail guru Mary Portas has called for fewer restrictions on night-time deliveries to boost UK retail business, in her independent review into the state of our high streets and town centres, commissioned by the government.
She cites delivery restrictions as a major obstacle to successful high street retailing.
“Even large retailers have told me that they’re put off town centre locations because of the red tape – and they’re the people with an infrastructure and bank account to deal with it..
“Businesses big and small have told me that restrictions, such as restrictions on night-time deliveries and noise, are an issue for them trading in town. Too often the voice of the few inhibits the ambitions of our businesses and some small issue can stop a project in its tracks,” she said.
Portas advocates setting up local delivery networks, and says that government plans to take further guidance on quiet night time deliveries from The FTA and the Noise Abatement Society, as set out in its Logistics Growth Review, is a step in the right direction.
Gordon Telling, FTA’s head of urban policy, said: “Our high streets rely on vans and trucks to stay open for business, but the Portas Review shows that excessive delivery restrictions have held back business growth. By allowing van and truck operators to deliver out-of-hours we will see improvements in congestion levels and air quality, less wasted fuel and more reliability built into our supply chains. The reduced peak-time traffic should also serve to make the high street more desirable for shoppers.”
