Councillor Furious About Guided Bus Road Closure (South East Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats)

South East Cambridgeshire Liberal Democrats <info@secambslibdems.org.uk>

Councillor Furious About Guided Bus Road Closure

October 22, 2007 6:14 PM

Cllr David Jenkins and Traders are furious about closing the road between Histon and Oakington/Girton

The Cambridgeshire Guided Bus team will be closing the road between Histon and Oakington/Girton for 3 to 4 months at the end of October.

This is the second time that Gatehouse Lane will be closed this year. During the last closure local people and traders highlighted the adverse impact this had on the local community. Despite this the County Council has dismissed requests to reconsider its plans.

County Councillor for Histon and Impington, David Jenkins, commented:

"This closure comes at the worst time for many traders. They have already recorded significant losses earlier in the year and with this closure spanning the Christmas period, they fear the worst.

"Histon is a thriving local economic centre and to potentially deprive it of so much business at this time risks damaging it permanently."

Councillor Jenkins is furious at the attitude of the County Council to the traders concerns. He added:

"We now have data which was not available when the first plans for the Guided Busway were drawn up and although local people have been vocal and traders have offered to share details of their losses earlier this year, they have had little response from the Council.

"All the County Council will say to me is that it has taken a politically sensible decision; it seems that it has decided not to take into consideration the costs of the closure on the local community. The Council is focused exclusively on the Guided Bus project and is not addressing the wider needs of the community."