Topic: Bypass

[Bob DeBilda]

Who was responsible for under estimating the cost of building the bridge in the first place?

Typical council deal with builders. Accept any figure without proper thought!


Oh Yeah, Happy New Year!

[baldy]

I've just checked the minutes of the planning committee decision. Actually, it was £2m towards the bridge which is to be added to the existing £1m. There is still £700k to find. 

As for the claim that I hold the electorate in contempt. This is just nonsense. I was simply talking about the fools who wasted time and energy on a no-hope attempt at stopping a planning application for residential development on the basis that the site should be used as a hospital ... when the NHS had made it clear that it was selling the site because it had no intention of reusing the site.

The whole campaign was based on pure nonsense and ignoring the fact that planning policies meant that the permission would certainly be given as a matter of law one way or another.

As far as I am aware, none of the really silly old hospital site campaigners were residents in Westbury West. In any event, there's always going to be people in my division who just talk nonsense and whom I will not support and presumably don't support me. I'd be astonished if everyone agreed with my views on everything. The real issue is whether I do and have done the work they want as a councillor. I think winning three hotly contested elections in a row in 2009, 2013 and 2017 as an independent against major well funded parties with colour leaflets etc settles the matter anyway ...

[baldy]

Who was responsible for under estimating the cost of building the bridge in the first place?

Typical council deal with builders. Accept any figure without proper thought!

Oh Yeah, Happy New Year!

I don't think council highway officers at the time underestimated the cost of building the bridge. It is just that the costs have risen sharply since then and the viability of developing the land on the northern side of the bridge has turned out to be very low. Highway officers would not have known the viability of the site overall until a developer actually came forward with a proper planning application proposal for analysis.

[baldy]

Baldy,

All you have suggested is that 700K then perhaps there might be a bridge.  This does not help the current situation. Is anything being looked at in the short/medium term to assess the traffic issues on Oldfield Road and perhaps start to address them with remedial measures?

The Westbury Area Transport Group (actually the same 4 Wiltshire Councillors as Westbury Area Board) meets with Highway Officers / Engineers about 6 times a year to discuss and prioritise funding for highway improvement or safety schemes.


Oldfield Road and its chicanes and bumps etc come up every year. Always, the highways officers come back saying that the chicanes and bumps cannot be removed because that would make the traffic problems including speeding worse. The only solution is the bridge. There is no budget for the bridge as the Government cancelled all the relevant capital budgets in 2010. We have been told that the only possible source of the funds to finish the bridge will be developers contributions from a planning permission on nearby land that would affect nearby traffic flows.

[Silverthreads]

Yes, I moved here within the last 5yrs. but in that time I have seen an increase in the size of vehicles, the volume of traffic and more speed!! and I ( in my humble opinion ) can only see it increasing more! ....the reality is .. nothing is improving.
Yes, you have done some good work for Westbury and I thank you for that but I have an opinion as well no matter where or how long I have lived there!! Oldfield Road needs monitoring.
Some campaigns are worth the effort of local people Russell!  If we hadn't campaigned to save the Mill, you wouldn't have had a flat with a nice view of the pond!
Happy New Year All

[baldy]

I did not say that all local campaigns are a waste of time. Yours and your late husband's was a successful one

Oldfield Road is probably the most monitored road in Westbury after the A350, not least because town councillor Tout lives there and if anything happens there that needs to be mentioned, he is talking about it via the town council, which raises most of the issues for the CATG (transport group) to look at.

I did not realise until I moved into a flat at Becks Mill that the waterfall under my bedroom window makes so much noise that I can hear the water whether the windows are open or closed. It sends me off to sleep in no time .... and then wakes me up about 3am every night ...

[Damnit]

Not having the link road built has kept the property values lower than the average for the rest of Westbury since it was opened up to Leigh Park so purchasers since 1998 have actually got much more property for their money, the compromise is knowing the road is busy at times. Its just a shame really that drivers will still opt for the shortest route taking more time with its inconveniences than a slightly longer route taking less time.