Fixing Shrewsbury's flawed gyratory scheme 'not that simple' admits councillor
Now that a key report into what went wrong with the implementation of Shrewsbury’s ill-fated gyratory scheme has been published, the focus is now on what can be done to improve it.
However, the key councillors in charge say the issue is not as simple as it might seem.
On Wednesday (December 3), Councillor Ed Potter presented a report to Shropshire Council's cabinet highlighting the work his task and finish group had done in finding out what went wrong with the project.
In total, the task and finish group made 10 recommendations, which cabinet has agreed to.
They centre around safety and accessibility; safety and emergency services; the wider impacts; stakeholder engagement; governance and oversight; financial management; active travel and connectivity; data monitoring; learning and culture; and strategic partnership arrangements.
“I went into this thinking we could rip it all up and go back to what it was,” said Councillor Potter, who chaired the task and finish group.
“[But] understanding the financial implications is quite a scary prospect for the local authority. Therefore, I think we need to be having conversations with the MHCLG [Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government] post the safety review to see what can be done may be the solution.
“I know that will take time, but it’s quite a complex situation. It’s always nice to attract money into Shropshire, but when we apply for funding, we have to ensure what is delivered is fit for purpose, rather than chasing the pound signs.”
Councillor Potter has also asked if Shropshire Council can look into making some immediate improvements around the traffic light sequencing.
“We’ve heard about improvements to queuing and delays, but also on the other hand we still hear about delays and impacts, so there’s clearly something not working there,” said Councillor Potter.
“We’ve had written evidence from Arriva around the bus stop, which is something that needs to be addressed.
“I think the learning is the main thing for future projects, and the working relationship with our partners. That is something we really need to improve on as a local authority.”
'Almost designed to wind people up'
Councillor Julian Dean, the leader of the Green and Progressive Independents Group, cycled along the lane on Wednesday morning (December 3).
“It’s wonderful for the 80 or so yards you are on the green lane, and then it’s really dangerous as a cyclist to try and turn right at the end of the lane,” he said.
“It was almost designed to wind people up and make them be against the active travel scheme, which is a real tragedy.”
Councillor Rob Wilson, the council's portfolio holder for transport and economic growth, said the key point in the report was there were opportunities to stop the scheme.
“Some officers did raise concerns in that regard, and they weren’t listened to,” said Councillor Wilson.
“That is a serious problem. Particularly referring to our partners, we’ve lost some confidence with those – we need to rebuild that.
“I think it’s clear that this project became increasingly disconnected from the Big Town Plan and Movements Strategy as it developed, and changes were made. As we look to see where the Movements Strategy goes, we need to learn the lessons from this and actually do things in a different way.
“I know the deputy leader met with the fire service, and it’s good to see they have seen the short-term improvements to response times.
“We do need to have that bus stop for park-and-ride and the bus community north of Shrewsbury, but we do need to resolve the problems that have been highlighted. I find it especially frustrating that we weren’t all aware of the problems with the width of that bus stop.
“The safety audit is being commissioned at the moment, which will cover all the bases.
“It’s very easy to jump to ‘you can do this’, but once you get the detail, it isn’t that simple. I know there are concerns about delays and there was a lack of pre-monitoring, Particularly, Friday evenings are a problem. They were a problem before – there were also problems on Ellesmere Road and Chester Street. That is now better but it is an issue we have to resolve going forward.”
Councillor Wilson added that the MHCLG is fully aware of what the council is doing, and the two parties met on Monday. He said that the final phase of the project on Castle Street has now been paused pending the safety review, and proposed a full report is sent back to cabinet in six months’ time.