Fears over bridge impact in West Lothian
AN objection to the Forth Crossing Bill is to be submitted by West Lothian Council.
Councillors met this week to consider the Bill and while the council welcomes a new crossing, there are several areas of concern which necessitate the need to lodge an objection.
These include the lack of adequate public transport provision, the lack of a direct trunk road link between the M9 and the new crossing and the subsequent impact it will have on Newton village, and the inadequacy of the Code of Construction Practice (CoCP) to defend vulnerable communities.
There are concerns that due to the omission of a direct link between the crossing and the M9, it could see a significant amount of traffic using the A904 through Newton. That would also reduce the life expectancy of the A904 and increase maintenance costs.
The council's environmental health officers have also identified a number of concerns with the Bill in relation to the CoCP, including it not providing environmental safeguards which are recommended by local authorities; no requirement to use best practice to comply with CoCP; and existing local authority powers to intervene in construction noise have been largely removed by the Bill.
Martyn Day, West Lothian Council's executive councillor for transport, said: "The council executive approved the submission of an objection to the Forth Crossing Parliamentary Bill to protect the community of Newton against the predicted increase of traffic resulting from the construction of the planned bridge and its surrounding road infrastructure.
"We are supportive of the need for the new bridge and we support the Government in its decision to advance the project and recognise the overall benefits it will bring. However we also have a duty to protect the interests of our communities which will be adversely effected by the construction of the new bridge."
Meanwhile Doug Tait, vice chair of BRIGS, a watchdog group set up to monitor developments with the Forth Replacement Crossing, said the group is also concerned over issues surrounding the Code of Construction Practice.
He said: "As it stands, the contractor(s) will have carte blanche to do as they please. The normal safety net for residents' to route complaints through the local community council will not be there to protect them and the real fear is that the ground rules will evolve as the project develops, with lip service being paid to community care and public interest.
"It is extremely important to get the CoCP objectives and measures significantly tightened up."
editorial@journalandgazette.co.uk
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Friday 18 May 2012
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