Be seen and be heard at Gateway inquiry

Jun 11 2009 by Andrew Bowan, Runcorn and Widnes Weekly News

I’VE been attending the Public Inquiry into a new bridge across the Mersey – and numbers of residents attending so far have been dismal.

This lack of attendance may be interpreted as opposition to the project or just lack of interest in getting a new bridge.

I support the building of a new bridge – in about 80 years’ time!

The inquiry has been told that bridges have a design life of 120 years. As the current bridge is less than 50 years old, this means a replacement isn’t needed for around 80 years.

Congestion charging could be used to keep the current bridge congestion-free for the next 80 years.

Discounts on bridge tolls for Halton people could be just wishful thinking, especially if Halton Borough gets swallowed up into Greater Liverpool.

I would add that the current inquiry into a new Runcorn bridge would not have been necessary if Halton Council had had Parliamentary support. They could have used a Private Members Bill or a Hybrid Bill to get the bridge built.

An Early Day Motion put forward in the House of Commons by a Liverpool MP received only 20 signatures from the 650 MPs in Parliament.

This current inquiry is a last desperate attempt by Halton Council to convince people that a new bridge is required.

DIELS ALDER

Timperley Street, Widnes

n.THE Weston Link part of the Central Expressway appears to have been deliberately misnamed by the borough council and the Mersey Gateway team in all of their so-called consultative literature in order to mislead residents.

Lodge Lane residents complained to the council about the proposals for the route to the Gateway. They were pacified by being told that the proposal was nowhere near them – as it isn’t.

The proposal was by Hallwood Park, Beechwood and Halton Lodge estates. Those residents thought that this proposal was not near to their homes and so were less concerned.

This road is signposted very clearly as being the Weston Link in both directions, not Lodge Lane Junction.

The other effect is that the Weston link noted on the Gateway map has the same effect for the residents near to this misnomer.

Lodge Lane is nearly a mile away from this junction.

I intend to bring this to the attention of the inquiry inspector. I’ll also point out to him the people suffering chronic respiratory conditions that live within a metre of proposals, including a six-year-old girl who featured on national TV last year for her bravery in dealing with her serious lung condition.

Your paper is the only one that has attempted at least to give some balance to the opposition of the route.

MARK ‘MAC’

(by email)