Burnham-On-Sea’s MP, David Heathcoat-Amory, has this week demanded that Somerset County Council “stops making excuses for the failure to deliver much- needed safety improvements to the Coast Road at Berrow.”
Mr Heathcoat-Amory wrote to the Minister for Transport after it was reported that the badly needed improvement scheme to build a footpath/cycle way along a dangerous stretch of the Berrow Coast Road had been blocked.
The project was agreed then cancelled supposedly because it does not conform to Central Government criteria laid down in the Local Transport Plan. These criteria are primarily for urban areas and are not appropriate for more rural areas. David Heathcoat-Amory does not accept this and has been in contact with Government Minister Rosie Winterton.
In July 2007 Mr Heathcoat-Amory met residents of Berrow and Brean, as pictured here, who turned out in force to voice their concerns about the failure to provide a pavement for the busy stretch of Coast Road, between Berrow Church and Brean. The scheme has widespread local support, including from Brean Parish Council and the police, as well as safety campaigners.
Mr Heathcoat-Amory says: “I have been campaigning for almost as long as I have been an MP for the completion of improvements to the Berrow Coast Road. There is still a missing stretch of footpath and cycle way. We are coming up to a holiday period and the road becomes extremely busy, the lack of footpath is creating a danger to all users. The road is vital for serving the holiday and caravan park area from Berrow to Brean.”
“I am fed up with Somerset County Council making excuses for failing to complete the badly needed stretch of road improvements. I do not accept this and contacted Rosie Winterton who has confirmed in her reply that the Department of Transport has not blocked the scheme and Somerset County Council has the go ahead to complete. The county council must complete the scheme and stop making bogus excuses.”
In a letter to Ms Sonia Davidson-Grant, Corporate Director of the Environment at Somerset County Council, the MP writes: “As you know I am most anxious to complete improvements to the Berrow Coast Road. A stretch of this road is still without a cycleway and footpath, which is dangerous, particularly during the summer months when the road becomes extremely busy with holiday traffic. It is quite unacceptable that this scheme, which was planned and agreed, has been withdrawn by the County Council.”
“In discussions with your officers and in correspondence I have been told that the fault lies with the government’s Local Transport Plan procedure whereby projects have to fit a number of national priorities. The most recent letter from your Head of Highways states: ‘Current LTP guidance does not adequately devolve policy priority to the local or regional level. If it did, schemes such as the Berrow Coast Road might enjoy a higher priority.”
“I therefore wrote to the Minister for Transport. In her reply she denies that her Department has responsibility for the failure to proceed with the Coast Road scheme. She says that it is for the authority to determine its own priorities; ‘Somerset County Council is perfectly able to make such decisions and it would need to be able to justify to the electorate the reasons for giving such a scheme a higher priority than similar schemes that provide higher cost-benefit ratios.”
“I believe that there are no similar schemes that provide a higher benefit. As to the views of the local electorate, I know there is strong and widespread support for the improvement of this road, as evidenced by public meetings I have attended. The Parish Council is also strongly in favour of the scheme. Indeed its continuing delay is the cause of intense anger and frustration as well as the continuing danger to road users.”
“I therefore look to you now to reinstate this road improvement scheme. The Minister’s reply indicates that your hands are not tied in the manner which has been described to me by your officers, and I look forward to a positive response from you.”
RELATED LINKS:
MP backs residents’ campaign for safer road in Berrow
Online video of statements given by Cllr Ham and Burnham’s MP
