The Swindon Labour Group has called for Swindon Borough Council to fund the detailed development plans for the Thamesdown Extension Road.
The Swindon Labour Group has called for Swindon Borough Council to fund the detailed development plans for the Thamesdown Extension Road.
This follows Cllr Keith Williams, Cabinet Member for Highways, Strategic Transport and Leisure, saying he was uneasy spending large amounts of council money on a project with no guarantee of approval for funding by Central Government.
The Labour Group Leader said the Council’s administration already needed to redo the traffic network as a whole at some stage anyway so that would leave the £600,000 needed to do the detailed design of the Thamesdown Extension Road. He argued that there was money available within the Council to fund the design work, including £3m of uncommitted New Homes Bonus money and £850K of one-off money that has been earmarked by Cabinet for various projects (see page 30 of the Swindon Cabinet papers).
The Swindon Labour Group Leader, Councillor Jim Grant, said:
“I believe spending the required money for the design work for the Thamesdown Extension Road is a long-term investment to help mitigate traffic on Swindon’s roads. I am certain that one day the Thamesdown Extension Road will be built, it is a matter of when. This design work can be kept for years to come if necessary, so the job of the Council should be to hasten the construction of this road and this design work is critical in achieving this.
Residents living in West Swindon and North Swindon who have to endure severe traffic every weekday morning will not forgive Swindon Council for letting this road slip away for another decade or more, so we believe this has to happen and happen at the earliest opportunity.
I think the Conservative Cabinet Member’s decision to not do the detailed design is symbolic of this Conservative administration’s attitude towards this road, which is to keep kicking it in to the long grass. The previous Labour administration as far back as 2002 were preparing to do the detailed design work for this road because we knew it was essential to manage traffic. We are now more than a decade on and this administration is still providing excuses in not providing this road.”
Cllr Jim Grant, Swindon Labour Group Leader