Somerset County Council has moved to reassure anxious town councillors in Burnham-On-Sea that they should not be worried about the state of the surface along Marine Drive, which this autumn will be in the national media spotlight when it becomes the finishing line for the South West Stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race.
Burnham-On-Sea.com reported earlier this week how a large part of Marine Drive has recently been resurfaced by the county council, but several hundred metres of tarmac near the race’s finishing line, at the junction with Pier Street (pictured above), has been ignored.
At Monday’s town council meeting, councillors said the condition of the road surface at this spot could be dangerous for cyclists as they approach the finishing line. Cllr Neville Jones said: “The surface of Marine Drive near the fountain urgently needs to be brought to the attention of the county council. There are ruts running along the surface all along the cycle race’s final sprint.”
But County Council spokesman Robert Booth contacted Burnham-On-Sea.com on Wednesday to reassure local people that the road surface has been fully checked.
“Marine Drive in Burnham has been inspected six times already and no problems have been found,” he said.
“We have a further inspection taking place next week, but the police and Tour Of Britain team are very happy with the condition of the road surface.”
Digital TV channel ITV4 will be broadcasting extensive coverage of the race, along with regional and international television channels.
Burnham-On-Sea.com exclusively reported in February that our town would be chosen as the finishing spot for the race on September 9th. The race is set to start in the south of Somerset in Chard and finish in Burnham in the north of the county.
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