Dear BCoC,
As a business dependent of ease of access in and out of the town the proposed road works to Brixham Road would have a great impact.
As a professional in the construction industry I am aghast at the lack of either public consultation or a suitable enabling works strategy proposed to mitigate the disruption in traffic movement. Those familiar with Barnstaple will be aware of the extensive road improvement works to the A361 and how a phased approach has been adopted.
As a quick exercise I have drafted a simple phasing plan to show how there could be potential for such an approach. Whilst not exhaustive of all the data relating to land use etc it hopefully opens up a conversation that complete closure is simply not an acceptable solution and all options must be presented.
Yours faithfully
Jonathan Ling-Cottey RIBA
MTA Chartered Architects Ltd
Many thanks for your reply Jonathan and your alternative proposal which seems eminently sensible and achievable. I’ve forwarded it to members of the chamber exec and the Torbay Business Forum exec who are spearheading the conversations with politicians and local councils. Would you be OK if we add this to the chamber website and social media with a credit to you and MTA Architects?
Absolutely fine. I am not suggesting there wouldn’t be issues with the alternative but the council has the power to implement any temporary approvals or acquisition to open up the possibilities. Associated costs should be borne by the developer and as such I suspect closure would be the most attractive option to them. I would have thought a Transport Statement should have been submitted in the application or appeal documents which would have highlighted the closure. The submitted Highways works only concerns the description of the intended works at each intervention on the public highway. None of the aggregated works describe how the works will be undertaken which should have been a consideration in the proposal and response by Highways/WSP.