Shropshire fire chief urges changes to Shrewsbury gyratory following fatal fire
Simon Hardiman suggests adjustments to aid better emergency response
Last updated 20th Feb 2026
Shropshire’s fire chief has written to the council with suggestions about Shrewsbury’s controversial gyratory road system following a fatal fire in the town centre.
The county’s top fire fighter sent his letter off to Shropshire Council on Wednesday morning (Feb 18) with ideas about changes that could be made and a possible pot of Government money.
“The gyratory system did not on this occasion have an impact on our response times to the incident in Castle Street,” said chief fire officer Simon Hardiman.
“That was at 3.30am but we as a service would be concerned if it happened in the middle of the day or at 4pm.”
Mr Hardiman said that recent changes in the traffic light phasing has made a difference and improved vehicle flows.
But he added that at times the traffic backs up from under the railway bridge to well past the town’s St Michael’s Street fire station and county HQ, making it tricky to navigate the fastest route into the town centre.
In an interview with the LDRS Mr Hardiman said a “Green Wave” system which automatically changes traffic lights to green to allow emergency vehicles through is one idea he would recommend.
Mr Hardiman added that Shropshire Council may well be aware of various pots of money available to make physical changes to the layout but he has pointed officials in the direction of funding that he is aware of that could help.
He added that the letter was not trying to tell the council what to do but to be “supportive” to the highways authority.
The fire chief added that it may also be possible to change the physical layout of the cycle lane and single carriageway to create the space for a fire truck to get through.
Sadly 81-year-old Dorothy Rose Roberts was confirmed dead by paramedics after being found by a firefighter in Perches House.
A coroner has opened an inquest into the death.
Mr Hardiman said fire crews who attended the incident on Tuesday, January 27, have all been offered trauma support, which is routine following fatal incidents.
Fire investigation officer Ross Donnelly has already said he was confident that the fire was accidental and electrical in origin.
But Mr Hardiman told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that work is continuing to identify the precise nature of the cause.