A member of Macau’s Legislative Assembly held a press conference on Friday to request the government abolish the pedestrian zone at Rua de Ferrocarriles, claiming establishment of the zone has affected traffic in the area and worsened the businesses of commercial tenants.
Rua de Ferrocarriles is an area that has come under the responsibility of Wynn Macau Ltd as part of the revitalization program for Macau’s old districts under gaming concession contracts. The pedestrian zone at Rua de Ferrocarriles was formally launched on 29 September 2023 on a trial basis, transforming the area into a pedestrian area from 11am to 1am daily in which time vehicles are unable to enter.
However, nearly one year after the establishment of the pedestrian zone, Legislative Assembly Member Ron Lam U Tou claims some commercial tenants consider their business situation to have worsened as a result of the new conditions. This, he said, is because the obstruction of traffic had reduced the number of customers who used to drive to the area.
He also claims some landlords have increased rents because of government claims that the pedestrian zone had increased the flow of people and lured new businesses to move in.
“The setting up of the pedestrian zone from 11am to 1am every day has obviously affected the business of shop operators, and after a year’s trial, it is obvious that business has dropped rather than increased,” he stated.
“The commercial tenants in the area hope that the trial run of the pedestrian zone can be ended as soon as possible, and that the pedestrian zone on Rua de Felicidade should not be set up as a long-term project.”
Macau’s Cultural Affairs Bureau said in April that it was studying the possibility of making the pedestrian zone on Rua de Felicidade a long-term project, and that it would collect the views of different organizations and the industry on how to proceed.
