Despite repeated warnings from professional engineers and Islanders alike over the past 4 years, the Isle of Wight Council continues to waste money on Floating Bridge 6 – that’s according to 2 local councillors.
Representatives from both East Cowes and Cowes have condemned the Council’s latest attempt to explain their way out of what went wrong with the Floating Bridge.
Cllr Lora Peacey-Wilcox of Cowes Medina ward says:
“For four years, I and others councillors around the Medina have tried to work with the current leadership and provided bulletproof engineering evidence that this floating bridge was not fit for purpose. Instead, the Council has wasted almost another floating bridge’s worth of money on it, and it still doesn’t offer a reliable and frequent crossing”.
The Chair of the Isle of Wight Council Scrutiny Committee has prepared documents discussing the Floating Bridge ahead of a Scrutiny Committee meeting next Tuesday (9th March). The documents have revealed that the troubled vessel has been out of action for over 300 days since entering service in May 2017.
Councillor Cameron Palin, Green East Cowes Town Councillor, says:
“These Scrutiny documents cover old ground, repeating the same old story with holes in it, and do not address why for the last four years the Conservative leadership have chosen to waste millions on this bridge, against engineers’ advice. The council appears to have hidden behind a legal case for four years now.
“We have not heard anywhere in these Scrutiny documents that the Council is promising to get full financial compensation, i.e the many millions that have been spent on Floating Bridge 6. Unless the Council gets the millions back, we potentially could be left with a dysfunctional floating bridge and a financial black hole.
Article continues below this advertisement “We need a new floating bridge that is as frequent and available as Floating Bridge 5 and that doesn’t continue to cost the taxpayers money. Four years down the ‘river’, we have a floating bridge that’s out of action more than 20% of the time, has long wait times, and continues to wreck local businesses and the economy as a whole. We’re tired of the Council’s posturing and their weak and often incorrect excuses, and their refusals to have done proper unbiased independent engineering audits of the whole floating bridge. It’s severely long overdue that the Council listen to the many engineers who have shown them that the hydraulics were going to fail, and a long list of technical problems, stemming from early on.
“Non-engineers such as a consulting company do a limited review procurement only – and the Council reviewing itself – are not what has been needed: proper, unbiased independent engineering audits and scrutiny of engineering technical documents. Floating Bridge 6 also costs more to run and will add up to a lot of taxpayer money unnecessarily being spent over the next 25 years.”
Cllr Peacey-Wilcox adds:
“There is no declared plan in these documents as to where the Council is headed with the floating bridge and if it will stop wasting money – whether this be thrusters or whatever – and no engineering proof that they will work and make an excellent frequent and reliable bridge. And there is no declared fallback position – i.e. Plan B if Plan A either fails to stand up to scrutiny, or, worse, bypasses proper scrutiny and fails in service!”
Dodgy Dave and pals keep trying to blame the “previous administration”, meaning Jonathan Bacon’s Indies, when they really mean the officers who were, and still are, in place. So the implication is that one or more officers is being protected, in which case we will never see the truth until that individual has received his Golden Handshake.
Unfortunately Helen we will never get to know the truth. Well covered up and it’s more than one individual involved. This mob do a brilliant impersonation of a possible Monty Pythons sketch. Instead of a dead parrot it’s a dead floating bridge. What’s worse is that a proportion of our council tax is squirrelled away into their pension fund.
It is down to several people, brought in people, advisors, consultants and gawd knows who else.
The blame no doubt will end up with a company that was used and no longer exists.
Does any one know when the vote date is? It seems to be a secret
It would be good to know when it is were it is and what we have to do to make our vote
Islsnd echo could you look in to this and put it in the braking news so all can see it
May 6th unless Bozo and pals take fright at losing control of practically every local council. Postal voting strongly recommended in case we are still restricted – apply early!
thanks Steven iv just printed loads off to give people
ill got mine in the post tomorrow
Let Dave Stewart use it as a place to stash all out council tax payments, oh hang out, that floating bridge is probably the reason for that huge rise, not because of any other reasons. All lies from the IOW Council.
Totally agree disgusting rise in council tax and we’re picking up the pieces for their p poor financial management
Hence the rip off council tax rise only for more cuts to be implemented.
And how much have our wonderful leaders back pocketed though this farce. But The real sad and discussting thing is they are pulling vital services increasing parking, council tax etc etc to fund this complete useless pile of junk it’s time to stop! cut the losses and flog it or pass it to the navy for target practice and bring back the trusty old one abait modernized to fit current slip. So the lesson here for our wonderful leaders DON’T FIX WHAT’S NOT BROKEN.
Tell us something we don’t already know. The council must think IOW Council Tax payers are stupid if they think we don’t know how much money they have WASTED. Just look at the picture on this post, the car disembarking from the boat, well trying to. Look at the ramp from the boat how it meets the ground……this basic stuff. How many cars get stuck or scrape their front valance?
£40,000 for 3 months advice. Nice.
So around about £615 aday give or take.
Bit better than minimum wage and the advisory person could pay the council tax in less than three days wage all thanks to us tax payers. W are so kind.
In fact nearer £62,000 as he got “extras”.
with the money they have wasted they could have had two more built welded them together had had a instant bridge
When you think about it, the so called council tax isn’t a payment for the cr*p services which they are supposed to be supplying us with, it is a money box for them to squander on themselves. What we are paying them, is a roof tax.Everyone who lives in a house or a flat is being taxed by the council for having a roof above their head. They are even charging council tax if you stay in a static caravan for more than so many days, saying that if you don’t have another main address,that caravan is your main residence. They don’t supply services like bin emptying, grass cutting, street lighting etc, but the owners are screwed level A council tax.