An extraordinary meeting of the Isle of Wight’s Full Council has been called to discuss the impending improvement works at St Mary’s Junction in Newport.
The meeting will convene, with the agreement of the Chairman, at 17:00 on Wednesday 25th September 2019 at County Hall, Newport.
6 members of the Isle of Wight Council – Councillors Brodie, Jones-Evans, Garratt, Fuller, Lilley and Love – have signed a request calling for the Council to abandon the proposed works until after improvement works have been completed for the Coppins Bridge junction.
Cllr Geoff Brodie, for Newport East, says:
“I organised support for the meeting because we all feel strongly that there should be a public record of those IW Councillors who oppose these highly disruptive works being undertaken until the problems at Coppins Bridge are addressed and subsequent benefits evaluated. So far it has been only Cabinet decision-making and the scheme that has been agreed for St Mary’s junction is entirely different to the one consulted upon nearly a year ago.”
Island Echo reported last week that Newport & Carisbrooke Parish Council has voted to support action to halt the works, which are due to begin at the end of September.
Let’s hope sense prevails and Coppins Bridge gets sorted first. Shall I hold my breath?
Why is it that these councillors are only now taking action re this ridiculous waste of public money.
We have all been aware of this scheme for quite some time.
The meeting is scheduled for next week but that will be too late for some, as the double yellow lines are being laid tonight along Riverway.
I despair.
Almost 150,000 islanders will be crossing their fingers, hoping that democracy wins…… Good luck. However, it is due to start a mere 5 days after the meeting, so, unless a decision is made on the night, will a postponement be made until it has?
The only way it would look like it was working is the fact cars would take longer to get down the duel carriage way so there would be less cars on it. But still backed up past the hospital and down the industrial estate. Just move the problem not sorting it.
Just dump it altogether !!!
Hooray……some common sense at last!!!!
Common sense may be starting to prevail. All motorists know that Roundabouts flow better than traffic lights. Let’s hope the Councillors understand this. The traffic problems are not a vanity project.
Good. Before you throw nine million pounds at it, why not have a good look at the options first. Try some traffic lights at peak times and see if that improves matters. Ultimately if you do decide to go ahead, please bring in properly qualified and experienced project managers and contractors who will not take 18 months to do the job. That is way too long to allow this level of disruption.
I agree it should be abandoned full stop and reassign any work to the actual problem that causes the traffic problems in newport and am sure every islander knows that coppins bridge is a bottle neck and 99% of the chaos caused it’s diabolical design poorly sequenced lights ie (snooks hill when the lights go green at the bottom of snooks hill the crossing lights go red even when noone is there?) Nothing moves. I can think of a really cheap solution to make coppins bridge run perfect it involves simply turning off the traffic lights except the crossing and da-da problem solved. So yes sort coppins bridge out before st Mary’s?
Hopefully, common sense will prevail, and the scheme will be put on hold indefinitely. Maybe the money could be better used in building some sort of structure across the Medina, between, say, East Cowes and Cowes to alleviate pressure on Coppjns Bridge. Just a thought!!!
I argee about some kind of bridge from east cowes to cowes would make more sense to do that first
A road has already been put I place on the end of the last estate that was built connecting with the small roundabout on the main road into and out of East Cowes, for the bridge that was going to be built connecting Cowes and East Cowes, decided on years ago but not completed. I agree with the last statement very good idea.
If the reports and comments in the press truly reflect the views of the island, there is only one person who is in favour of this scheme. but, of course, he has ‘delegated powers’ so it needs a fight to stop it from happening. Ridiculous!
This is a completely ridiculous scheme which, like the Coppins Bridge roundabout, has been designed by desk drivers. It would be far cheaper just to extend the present roundabout so that all roads come out on to it.
£9 million? Just spend a couple of hundred quid hiring a room at Isle of Wight College to educate people on how to use slip roads. I’d imagine that would have a far more positive effect on traffic flow than multiple sets of traffic lights.
Lets hope they the scheme is abandoned it is only to put infastructure in place for redevelopement of the prison complex.. If it goes ahead in its current form it is a total waste of the grant money given to improve our roads.
We don’t need it. Put the money towards a bridge over the Medina!
Hopefully all working (sic) in county hall will be clocking in each shift so there will be no excuse for being late. Ha!