Well attended meeting rejects councils road plan.
Attending the meeting of the A24 Alliance
at the Andrew Hall, Shipley on Monday 2nd November were over 10
property owners who will loose land etc as a direct result of the West
Sussex County Councils plan to carry out major works on the A24. They were
joined by numerous residents who have lived in the area of the A24 for
many years.
All agreed that the County's proposals were not
the answer, they did not want a motorway-style road and they did not want
housing developments that would surely follow. Moreover, it appears that the
County Council were not doing some road repairs or properly maintaining
the highway. As a consequence, it seems, accidents are
occurring on the badly maintained road - accidents the council then claim are
the reason the motorway style road is needed.
At the meeting people volunteered to join the
campaign and stop the council's over the top scheme, and
once thrown out, to get the small scale, but necessary, roadwork's done so
that the road serves the residents near the road, the local surrounding
community and West Sussex as a whole. The next step is that the A24 Alliance
is asking the County Council officers and the local Councillors to a meeting
so that residents can ask questions and make their views known.
Commenting, Peter Finch for the A24
Alliance said: "Clearly WSCC have misjudged the determination of the
local residents to get this scheme binned. The council came in for stinging criticism
on a number of issues, not least of which was the basic human right to be
heard. It was claimed that despite council announcements that numerous
residents and organisations had been consulted, the fact was many had not.
Clearly a paramount
reasons why it was inappropriate for the council to grant
approval".
"Then of course is the issue of who is
going to pay the £36million - and rising - bill for this road. Haven't we
been told by the government and the one in waiting that there's no money and
were all going to have to work until we drop to pay for the sins of the
bankers. Yet despite all this WSCC carry on spending vast sums of money in
the planning of the road as if the county hall money tree will have a bumper
harvest next year. Maybe councillors should get out a bit more, it
they did they'd see the tree was dead and the county hall coffers are empty.
Did I hear increase council tax?".
ENDS~~~~~~~~
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