Shop advertising boards in Marlow town centre have been branded a “pedestrian hazard”, as councillors agree to tighten up the rules on where they can be positioned.

In February this year, Bob Savidge, a member of the Marlow Society, criticised shops in the town centre for making it “difficult” for people in wheelchairs to get past the advertising boards that litter the pavements.

Marlow mayor-elect, cllr Jocelyn Towns, said the council has received a number of complaints about the A-boards and agreed that the rules needed tightening up.

At a town council planning meeting on March 28, she said: “We do need to look at this because we are getting quite a lot of complaints and it is messy. Some people think they are entitled to put two A-boards out and those who have shops off the High Street think it is perfectly acceptable to put theirs on the High Street.

“I think they are a pedestrian hazard and I don’t understand why if they have a sign above the shop that says who they are, why do they need another?”

The council’s current rules about A-boards says that businesses must only have one outside their own premises, leaving a gap of no less than 1.2 metres to the kerb edge.

Businesses who do not have a shop front on the main pedestrian routes are allowed to put a board in a “nearby, sensible location.”

However, the rules state that board sizes and locations will always be at the discretion of town council officers.

Katherine Joy, Marlow town council’s deputy clerk, said their current policy is “unclear enough not to be enforceable”.

Cllr Towns added: “I think we do have to tighten our policy up. The principles are a little bit woolly. We need to take a trip around the town so we can understand what is happening.”

Councillors agreed to carry out site visits throughout the town and would consult with businesses and with the Chamber of Trade and Commerce.