ROADWORKS on the controversial Pedestrian Heart scheme in Darlington town centre failed to stop shoppers from flocking to the Christmas sales.

The two main shopping centres - the Cornmill Centre and Queen Street - reported a sharp rise in footfall, even though much of the area surrounding them has been closed while work on the £8.5m project continues.

"We have been really busy over the Christmas week, but the Pedestrian Heart project has damaged trade over the past few months," said Denise Jeffery, manager of the Queen Street Shopping Centre.

"In the months before Christmas, when we thought footfall would increase, it didn't go up by as much as expected.

"Throughout the year, people have stayed away because of the roadworks in the area.

"People want to see a nice open high street, but that isn't happening at the moment.

"But our two main entrances have been clear over Christmas so we have been lucky in that respect.

"We opened yesterday and at 6am there were queues of people waiting outside to get into Next for the first day of the sales."

In the two weeks before Christmas, about 75,000 shoppers visited Queen Street, and in the week running up to the December 25, that figure increased to more than 100,000.

"Generally the roadworks have affected trade, and I think everybody would tend to say the same thing," added Mrs Jeffery.

"Hopefully next Christmas when it's all finished it will all have been worth it."

The pedestrianisation project began in October last year in a bid to pitch Darlington as a serious contender in the busy North-East tourism market.

Critics claimed the disruption caused by extensive roadworks led to falling profits at town centre stores, but bosses at the Cornmill Centre said yesterday that business had been brisk over Christmas.

"It's difficult to say whether the Pedestrian Heart project has had an effect on trade or not," said Cornmill manager Susan Young.

"Our footfall last week was up on the same week last year, and a lot of the retailers are reporting record takings.

"It would be unfair to blame any loss of business on the Pedestrian Heart project.

"The footfall on Boxing Day was up 18 per cent on last year, and we had 210,000 visitors last week, which is 22 per cent more than the year before."

A spokeswoman for Darlington Borough Council said: "We are very pleased to hear that the town is busy."

The Pedestrian Heart project is expected to be finished by next summer.