Bedford Borough Conservative Councillors have reacted positively to news that that the Mayor has listened to their request for plans to be drawn up to reduce congestion in Bedford town centre.
On the 6th June the Bedfordshire on Sunday published an article on the Conservative Group’s calls for the Council to plan for the future of Bedford’s road network, including an appraisal of the long-awaited Batts Ford Bridge.
Following this, at the 25th June meeting of the Mayor’s Executive it was announced that the Council has set aside £500k for ‘preparatory work’ on improvements to Bedford’s road layout. This will incorporate an assessment of the potential benefits of the Batts Ford Bridge, which has been mooted for decades to connect River Street on the northern side of the river with Kingsway on the southern side.
Conservative Cllr Roger Rigby said:
‘Despite being in power since 2009 the Mayor has neglected to carry out a road network assessment that would be crucial in the Council’s business case to secure funding for the Batts Ford Bridge. Conservative Councillors were therefore pleased that so soon after our call for action that he managed to find £500k to conduct a review of Bedford’s road network including the Batts Ford Bridge.
‘We are hopeful that the assessment will consider in detail all the potential options for Bedford’s road network including the possibility to pedestrianise aspects of the town centre if traffic can be diverted via the Batts Ford Bridge. This would unlock the potential of the town’s new cinema, restaurants and hotel and give a huge boost to Bedford’s businesses.’
The Bedfordshire on Sunday article can be read at the following link: http://www.bedfordshire-news.co.uk/News/Tories-call-to-open-up-Bedfords-road-network-20140607120000.htm