A police officer has today claimed that a passageway from a Shropshire shopping centre has become a haven for anti-social activities and drug use.

Constable David Walton, who patrols Shrewsbury town centre, said he was frustrated that the 70 Steps, which connects Pride Hill to Raven Meadow, has become a blight on the town and that nothing has been done to halt its decline.

He called for a concerted effort to restore the area to some “level of acceptability” although he added it might be too late to do something about the route.

Shropshire Council has carried out a public consultation on the possibility of gating off the route but it still remains open to the public.

Mr Walton said: “For many years I have been seeking the closure of the steps as they have no redeeming features and are generally used for illicit purposes as demonstrated by the number of used syringes, condoms, security tags and excrement.

“The pungent smell of urine is quite over-powering particularly on a warm summer’s day.

“The walls are completely defaced with sexually explicit graffiti some of which has racist and homophobic overtones.”

Mr Walton has now written to MP for Shrewsbury Daniel Kawczynski to set up a meeting to discuss the problem.

He added: “The town centre policing team take great pride in ensuring Shrewsbury is a safe place to visit and that visitors find it aesthetically pleasing.

“Regrettably the 70 Steps is the one area where this perception is sadly lacking and there appears to be little interest in tidying it up.”

Shrewsbury has various passageways – or shuts – linking up the town, many of which have medieval origins.

In May the closure of one such shut caused outrage among residents.

Malcolm Eade, a resident and business owner in Frankwell, put up a metal gate between 111 and 112 Frankwell because he said it was attracting people with anti-social and criminal behaviour.

But many locals, some of whom had been using the passageway for decades, were left furious about the decision to close the shortcut which linked Nettles Lane in Mountfields to the main Frankwell area and shops.

By Emma Kasprzak