Council admit election pledge is unworkable Options

[Richard Garvie]

During the election campaign, residents in Thatcham were promised by the Conservative Party that the council would "look far and wide" to come up with a solution to fix congestion around Thatcham Station. They haven't looked that far as they still don't know how much it would cost, but they apparently know enough to say that it will never be resolved.

From the council:

"There is nothing that the Highway Authority can do to resolve this problem whilst there is a level crossing at this location. The only way that the problem could be resolved would be to build a bridge over the railway thus removing the need for the level crossing. However this would be extremely expensive and there is unfortunately no likelihood in the foreseeable future of the Council being able to fund such an expensive proposal. The cost of providing this structure at present is unknown. Given the vertical alignment at the level crossing it is likely that any such structure would also need to continuously span the Kennet and Avon Canal and the River Kennet, which would considerably add to the cost.

There is very little funding for transport schemes being provided from central government in the current economic climate but where it is this is only provided for projects of high strategic importance. It is highly unlikely that this location in Thatcham would ever be deemed to have significant strategic importance to the highway network even if central government funds were to become more widely available at some point in the future."

[Richard Garvie]

Maybe they have edited their manifesto like the Lib Dems did after originally launching it online??? I have the leaflet for Thatcham West sitting in front of me.

Anyway, the quoted section put in the OP is from a council FOI response, so that is the official council line. They are saying it, I simply asked what they had done to look at the project and what the viability and cost would be.

The fact is, the council have said that the bridge is unlikely to ever be built. Very different to the promises made on the doorstep and in election materials throughout Thatcham.

[dannyboy]

Maybe they have edited their manifesto like the Lib Dems did after originally launching it online??? I have the leaflet for Thatcham West sitting in front of me.

Anyway, the quoted section put in the OP is from a council FOI response, so that is the official council line. They are saying it, I simply asked what they had done to look at the project and what the viability and cost would be.

The fact is, the council have said that the bridge is unlikely to ever be built. Very different to the promises made on the doorstep and in election materials throughout Thatcham.

They looked far & wide - which was the 'pledge' - & there is no likely or probable solution.

What would you rather be told - that it was still work in progress?

[Richard Garvie]

They looked far & wide - which was the 'pledge' - & there is no likely or probable solution.

What would you rather be told - that it was still work in progress?

There has been no such work since the election. What we know now is what the council knew way before the election. In other words, the Conservative Party must have known before the election that the project was a dead duck, yet their candidates were talking it up prior to the election.

[dannyboy]

There has been no such work since the election. What we know now is what the council knew way before the election. In other words, the Conservative Party must have known before the election that the project was a dead duck, yet their candidates were talking it up prior to the election.

You know this as fact?

[James_Trinder]

You know this as fact?

Well, you'd have to be an idiot not to know in advance that nothing could practically be done about this so the Conservative candidate who pledged to look into this is either an idiot or a liar. The people who voted for him/her on the basis of this pledge should also display a bit more common sense.