Urgent meetings are to be held between senior figures in Oxdown, in a bid to improve the subways at James Street.
Phillip Rush, Chairman of the Oxdown Chamber of Trade, confirmed it was looking to meet Oxdown Council and Police, to take "drastic action" to re-energise the subways.
He claimed that muggers, vandalism, litter, graffiti and beggars have tarnished the reputation of the subways and they are not prepared to let the situation further deteriorate. "We believe we have one of the best shopping centres in the region, and we want to encourage people to visit us, not to see them put off", Mr Rush stated.
The action comes just a week after an elderly man suffered a blow to the head, during a scuffle with a group of teenagers, in the James Street subways.
Although the man is making a good recovery and his head wound is not serious, its just one of a series of incidents that has given the subways a bad reputation.
The subways linking Oxdown Bus Station with the town market and shopping centre have now become a prime location for muggers to target passing shoppers.
Other proposals that the Chamber aims to bring forward are plans to re-decorate the subways with murals and reduce the amount of rubbish presently left there.
It is thought that the deteriorating state of the pedestrian links has led to many residents avoiding using the subways, which have been in place since 1995.
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