Plans for futuristic ‘street hubs’ which would have provided free wifi in a city centre have been refused.

BT submitted proposals for the service across Canterbury, which would have also offered charging facilities and free UK calls.

But the city council’s planning team has refused the bid as it says the displays would be “harmful to the character and appearance” of the conservation area.

Six street hubs would have been installed across the city as part of the plans, including near M&S, St George’s Street, near Metro Bank, outside Clarks in Whitefriars and two in St George’s Place.

A planning application submitted on behalf of BT says the screens display content at 10-second intervals, including commercial content that funds the service, as well as local community and council material.

“The street hub has added benefits of free wifi connectivity and other valuable services to tourists and recreational users, thereby encouraging greater use of the city’s streetscapes as part of the wider digital connectivity expected in modern cities,” the plans state.

“To enable this to be provided free of cost to the taxpayer - national and local – advertisement on either side of the unit is required to support this function, and as such is an intrinsic part of the development.

“Beyond the commercial advertising required to sustain the unit, the 5% allocation of time given to Canterbury City Council presents a unique opportunity to improve and enhance their existing streetscape, by allowing them to actively display a wide range of local community and council content.”

The street hubs provide access to maps and can give directions to nearby landmarks and services.

They can also tell residents and visitors about local services, events and news - as well as warnings and public notices.

Canterbury Business Improvement District, an independent, business-led, not-for-profit initiative, objected to the proposals over fears the screens would impact on the front of stores “paying significant rent and rates” which is largely calculated on frontage.

It also says the hubs have become a “mecca for anti-social behaviour and criminality” in other parts of the country.

The city council was also concerned about the bid and a planning officer refused them.

“This level of harm would be less than significant and so should be weighed against any public benefits...”

“Given its location and design, the proposed street hub would represent a prominent and incongruous feature within the street scene, harmful to the character and appearance of the conservation area,” the report said.

“This level of harm would be less than significant and so should be weighed against any public benefits that the development would deliver.

“Whilst the proposed street hub would deliver some public benefit in providing 4G capabilities and free phone charging for the general public amongst other features, they would also be harmful to the vitality and viability of the city centre in terms of their location impacting on the flexible use of the area for events, markets, activities etc.

“The public benefits of the proposed street hub are not therefore considered sufficient to outweigh the harm to the character of the conservation area.”