The ruling Conservative administration is getting into a knot over traffic. For years in opposition they opposed all the measures the Liberal Democrats proposed to improve bus flows. The bus gate proved to be one of the best traffic decisions taken. It enabled buses to flow through the city and has given us 7 years of bus passenger growth and a good network in Bath. Going back further they opposed the bus only access across Pultney Bridge and since they took control they have started to use the bus gate as a fine-revenue-collecting system.
Now they are using a threat of Gridlock to bulldoze through an inappropriate solution on the west of Bath to put in a bus rapid transit system and use up a valuable greenway. The Liberal Democrats have proposed a better bus based system round the Lower and Upper Bristol Roads and to bring this greenway back into use as a cycle and pedestrian route.
Residents have started their own website to oppose this plan = see this link.
The Conservatives are resisting all opportunity for public debate and have put out this Council PR council
Stark warning over worsening congestion
A new website – www.bathnes.gov.uk/stopgridlock – launched by Bath and North East Somerset Council provides a stark warning about increasing levels of traffic congestion.
Residents already face considerable difficulties using the area’s road network – but new figures from the Council reveal that the number of cars travelling through central Bath at rush hour is set to increase by 14% in just ten years. Some 27,000 people travel in and out of Bath by car for work every day. The annual cost of traffic congestion in the area is £50 million. One-fifth of travelling time is currently spent at a standstill in the West of England area, which also includes Bristol, South Gloucestershire, North Somerset.
Councillor Malcolm Hanney, Deputy Leader of Bath and North East Somerset Council, said: “Tackling congestion is one of the most difficult challenges facing the area now and in the future. The fact rush hour traffic in Bath will increase so considerably in the next ten years shows how crucial it is that residents and local businesses understand this problem and the need for effective, long-term solutions. This is purpose of the website. Bath and North East Somerset Council has a vision priority of improving transport and the public realm. If the Council is serious about achieving this prioirty then doing nothing is not an option.”
The website – www.bathnes.gov.uk/stopgridlock – outlines the scale of the traffic problems faced today and the challenges posed by Government proposals for significant growth. Over the coming weeks it will explore the measures being implemented by the Council to meet these challenges to provide better public transport, better personal transport, and unclog the roads. Residents will be able to subscribe to updates, and give their views about the challenges and measures being implemented by the Council.
Traffic problems in the area are widely recognised with a recent website suggesting that Bath is the 5th most congested Parliamentary Constituency in the country. The independent Audit Commission corporate assessment of Bath and North East Somerset Council published in September stated:
“…much more remains to be done to deliver transport improvements. Congestion remains acute in the Bath area as roads are close to capacity. Proposals to build significant numbers of new homes in the area places even greater pressure on the transport infrastructure.”