STRUGGLING with the problem of Blackburn's town-centre congestion, the council plans more pedestrianisation - which could close Church Street to traffic. But traders fear stopping the cars will send shoppers elsewhere.

Blackburn may have a king-size traffic headache - and one not helped by the government withholding cash for a proper inner-relief road.

But councillors should listen carefully to the traders before they decide - even if the task of curbing congestion without curbing customers is a tricky one.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.