West Lothian 'Island Village' link may still be two years from construction
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info
Plans for a path from West Lothian's 'Island Village' of Stoneyburn are set to go before the council later this year.
But it could be another two years before the path is built, councillors on the Fauldhouse and Breich Valley Local Area Committee heard this week
By that time the original £2m funding package will have expired and new money will have to be found.
In a report to the committee Graeme Burton, the council's Design Engineering Manager, said the two year deadline had been built in to accommodate the potential for Compulsory Purchase Orders on sections of the route.
Mr Burton told councillors that negotiations were ongoing with landowners along the route and wildlife surveys of bats and newts are currently underway, with plans being prepared for the council to consider after the summer.
In his report he added: 'It is still likely that the Council may have to consider pursuing the route of Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO), to ensure all the necessary land along the route is secured for the project. A CPO cannot progress until planning permission has been granted.
'Officers will continue to work with the current design consultant Local Transport Projects Ltd and ecologist Gavia Environmental to progress the design of the cyclepath link.
'Officers are keen for the project to be progressed but the time-line for delivery is dependent on the conclusion of the required surveys, planning approval and potential land discussions and any negotiations that may have to take place.
He added: 'The anticipated timescales officers estimated previously were in the region of 18 to 24 months to get the appropriate permissions and secure the required land. Once funding is secured, it would then take in the region of ten months to a year to carry out the tender process to procure a suitable contractor to construct the project.
'These dates are estimates at this time and will not be known in more detail until the appropriate planning and CPO processes are progressed.'
Councillor Cathy Muldoon asked for the committee to be given regular updates on the proposals.
Villagers, who live in what they brand the Island Village, have been fighting for more than two years already for a footpath and cycle route to Fauldhouse three miles to the east. That's where the nearest health care facilities for the village are.
Additionally they are campaigning to complete a footpath linking Stoneyburn and East Whitburn
Despite lying at the almost geographical centre of West Lothian Stoneyburn has few bus connections and few pavements beyond the village boundaries, making walking hazardous along narrow and winding B-roads which are heavy with undergrowth and hedging in the summer.
Sandy Edgar, one of leading campaigners for the improved footpaths welcomed the progress but admitted he was disappointed at the potential for delay.
"We are pleased to see continued progress on this vital connection for our island village. Enhanced connectivity will contribute positively to the physical and mental well-being of all residents, while also providing a crucial link to neighbouring villages and transport networks.
"However, we are disappointed with the current time frames and would welcome any opportunity to accelerate the process, while recognising the necessary steps involved in its development."
The council has long supported the footpath plan and enlisted Sustrans to help. The bulk of the £2m costs will go on the development of a new shared use footpath/cyclepath crossing over the A706 which will be by way of an overbridge.
The Sustrans promise of funding through Places for Everyone funding expires in September but councillors were assured that replacement funding can come from the new Transport Scotland Active Travel Infrastructure Fund, which council officers will apply for in the 2026/27 financial year.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Pembrokeshire Herald
5 hours ago
- Pembrokeshire Herald
Cabinet approves transport strategy wish list
PEMBROKESHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL'S Cabinet has endorsed a Regional Transport Strategy that relies on Welsh Government funding of £125m over the next five years. However, the plan also relies on the Council spending other money allocated to it by the Welsh Government to pay for the delivery of Welsh Government as well as local priorities. Based on comparisons between similar projects, the low end of the cost of delivering the Pembrokeshire-only projects will be at least £66m. That suggests that not only will all the projects not come to fruition in the plan period but also indicates that the Welsh Government funding allocation to them underestimates the cost of delivering the majority, if not all, of the projects. If the strategy's budget is fantasy, the prospects of delivering all of it are even more fanciful. The projects in the strategy read like a Guardian reader's wishlist instead of something grounded in local needs. ACTIVE TRAVEL SCHEMES DOMINATE The thirty-plus projects located solely in Pembrokeshire include fifteen schemes solely dedicated to active travel or which incorporate active travel as part of them. In context, and based on the cost of delivering similar schemes, the low-end estimate for 'active travel' schemes alone is around £22m. 'Active Travel' under the Welsh Government's Active Travel Act refers to efforts to reduce the use of cars for everyday journeys, such as commuting and education. Active travel schemes create infrastructure which supports walking, cycling, and wheeling (e.g., wheelchairs, mobility scooters). Those schemes work well in urban areas. However, in rural areas with dispersed working populations, such as Pembrokeshire, their impact is less beneficial. The now-former Welsh Government minister Lee Waters got an earful from Plaid Cymru and fringe environmental groups (mostly funded by the Welsh Government) when he dared say that cars would continue to be the primary mode of transportation in rural Wales. If an MS from Dolgellau can use an e-scooter to get the mile and a half from their taxpayer-funded flat in Cardiff to the Senedd, there's evidently no reason why commuters between Fishguard and Haverfordwest can't do the same. The active travel schemes planned for Pembrokeshire include a Multi-User Route from Narberth to Haverfordwest, an active travel route from Pembroke Dock to Pennar, one from Pembroke to Angle, six schemes in and around Tenby, and an expansion of the County Council's e-bike scheme. BIG TICKET SPENDING The big spending item is the relocation of the A487 at Newgale. That project has been on the cards for fourteen years, if not longer. It forms part of the Welsh Government's regional transport strategy as a permanent solution to the challenge of coastal erosion and the increased risks of tidal and pluvial flooding, standing against less certain and temporary interventions to hold the existing line. As it is part of the Regional Strategy, it will be predominantly funded by the Welsh Government through project-specific grants, in the same way as the preliminary investigations and public engagement. The plan will funnel transport funding towards supporting the Celtic Sea Freeport. Its backers hope the Freeport's economic impact will be positive and spread across the Freeport area. However, the existing transport infrastructure for it is a bad joke. Addressing its shortcomings is a major component of the Regional Transport Strategy. Setting aside projects scheduled for Neath Port Talbot, millions of pounds are projected to be spent on hydrogen fuel infrastructure and green/blue energy grid improvements. However, one project guaranteed to cause controversy seeks to increase road capacity and flow through Pembroke to support increased traffic from the Celtic Freeport development in the Angle Peninsula. Bearing in mind obvious geographical and logistical constraints and its need to cross conservation areas and sensitive landscapes within the National Park, any road expansion (there's also an active travel route planned) will likely cause uproar and cost tens of millions to deliver. That is, however, a long-term project. MORE TRANSPORT HUBS In the medium term, the Regional Strategy looks at a multi-million-pound project to improve roads between Haverfordwest and Milford Haven. That scheme looks to address congestion between the county town and the centre of Freeport operations in Pembrokeshire. Again, geographical and logistical issues suggest that the project will find it difficult to do much more than put lipstick on a pig. If, however, the scheme manages to resolve the congestion hotspots at Cartlett, Salutation Square (subject to a separate congestion-easing plan), Freemen's Way, and Johnston as far as the Sunnycroft Roundabout, it will doubtless be welcomed by commuters. And, if you thought one transport hub was a bad idea, there's more to come – from the Milford Haven transport interchange to one planned for Pembroke Dock, improved access to Fishguard's ferry port, and a host of other projects that will connect Pembrokeshire's public transport network, as the plan puts it poetically 'ensuring better multimodal connectivity'. Given the almost certain budget problems which these projects will encounter and, therefore, cause the County Council when it comes to setting its budgets, ensuring Pembrokeshire gets what it needs to improve the local economy instead of what the Welsh Government thinks it ought to have will be a major source of tension and contention. If half of the plan is delivered on time, on budget, and within the Welsh Government's funding envelope, its effects will be limited – as we will all have pigs to fly around on.
BBC News
8 hours ago
- BBC News
Oxford Bus Company welcomes plan to tackle 'devastating' traffic
A bus company has welcomed council plans to develop proposals to tackle Oxford's "devastating" Bus Company previously urged Oxfordshire County Council to find a "Plan B", after the ongoing Botley Road closure delayed the authority's planned introduction of traffic council responded to this by confirming it would be drafting new plans to deal with the city's congestion Marion, the bus company's managing director, said he was "encouraged by the announcement" and "looked forward to engaging" with the council to "improve journeys" for bus users. "A robust bus network is critical in order for the Council to achieve its sustainability targets on the county's roads which we are wholly supportive of," Mr Marion said."To further enhance the appeal of travelling by bus, we need journeys to be faster and more reliable than is currently possible."Present levels of congestion are having a devastating impact on our city which we're keen to help resolve through positive discussion."Oxford Bus Company said journey times on the Abingdon Road had increased by an average of 17% since the Botley Road was closed, with services between Blackbird Leys and Oxford city centre slowing by 33% compared with Mr Marion's correspondence, the council confirmed that potential options to improve travel conditions would be discussed by the council had planned to introduce contentious traffic filters on several major roads in autumn 2024, but they were pushed back for another two years due to the ongoing closure of Botley councillor Brad Baines previously argued argued that the county council plans did "not answer questions about affordability of bus services or routes going where people need to go"."These are key barriers which are yet to be addressed or even considered." You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Powys County Times
a day ago
- Powys County Times
Powys council to consider Home Office asylum seeker deal
Powys County Council is to consider a proposal from the Home Office which would see it get a boost to its housing budget in return for supporting asylum seekers. In a meeting of the cabinet next week, councillors will consider a pilot scheme being proposed by the Home Office which could increase support for the county's housing budget from Government funds. The paper recommends the cabinet puts forward a non-binding 'expression of interest' in the scheme on behalf of Powys County Council along with Carmarthenshire and Monmouthshire, to participate in the Home Office Asylum Dispersal Pilot. The plan would see the council buying or building new homes backed by Government money, then leasing them to the Home Office for 10 years before they return to the council's own estate. The Home Office would 'provide capital funding to Local Authorities to increase accommodation supply (of various types) in the medium-term (next 2-5 years)'. This would be through the 'purchase and renovation, or construction of new homes, including where practical on Local Authority owned land'. The Council would then 'lease the properties, which it would own, to the Home Office at Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates for a 10-year term', with Powys County Council 'regaining control of the properties after this when Home Office demand should be reducing following the implementation of wider initiatives.' It is thought this model 'will support a net increase' in the Powys County Council's own housing portfolio 'as well as add to the net availability of homes in each area where this model is taken forward'. The paper adds that 'should any new development of homes follow it is anticipated such projects would be funded by the Home Office and not incur costs to the Council but would ultimately lead to an increase in the Council's housing portfolio.' It is thought the plan would relieve one of the large financial pressures on Powys County Council which, the report says, has an estimated a budget gap of more than £60m over the next five years. it would cut the need for high-cost temporary accommodation currently being used for people on the social housing wait list. The boost in housing stock would also allow 'for quicker permanent housing to be offered to those in need of a home' and 'increase council tax revenue through a net increase in the number of homes in the county.' Help support trusted local news Sign up for a digital subscription now: As a digital subscriber you will get Unlimited access to the County Times website Advert-light access Reader rewards Full access to our app The council would also have more of a say where people would be housed with the paper adding the council would be 'in a better position to shape the future design of asylum dispersal, especially in rural areas, as an alternative to having to comply with Home Office directives which may not be so sensitive to local need'. The paper adds that: 'The provision of accommodation and support for asylum seekers and refugees is a complex matter, which to be undertaken equitably and safely benefits from understanding and empathy across communities and neighbourhoods.' It goes on to stress that 'the Council, both officers and members, as an accountable public service, has a role to play in helping dispel rumours and misinformation about such matters and encourage a greater understanding within our communities'.
