WHAT YOU ALWAYS KNEW IS NOW OFFICIAL: SOMERSET’S TRANSPORT SERVICE IS DREADFUL (17/10/05)

A Government report has slammed Somerset County Council’s Transport service.

“This is a classic example of chickens coming home to roost,” said the Conservative Environment & Transport Spokesman, Anthony Trollope-Bellew. “The Liberal Democrats at County Hall have taken money away from roads and transport for years and this is a direct consequence. There is no escaping the fact that Somerset’s Transport service is in a dire state.”

The Department for Transport report was triggered after Somerset was labelled “weak” by an initial Government assessment.

It criticises the Administration for poor progress towards targets and a failure to deliver on the planned programme. It will come as no surprise to many that the report states “only 33% of targets were on track” and that “there was a significant divergence between planned investment programmes and delivery – in particular that only 50% of the schemes were delivered as planned.”

The figures confirm that Somerset’s residents get a raw deal when it comes to transport.

The report highlights that the Transport service has suffered due to being a low priority for the Administration and points to many problems caused by the lack of adequate resources. It says ''the team was under resourced , under valued and lacked a champion'' and confirms that ''the relatively low priority accorded to transport by members has been a handicap.''

It goes on to warn those in control of the County Council that “Somerset cannot afford to continue to strip money out of transport revenue budgets.”

On behalf of growing numbers of disappointed residents Conservatives have long argued that the County’s roads and infrastructure were in desperate need of investment. Yet the Liberal Democrats have continued to take money allocated by the Government for roads and used it to plug gaps elsewhere in their budgets.

“This report spells out the situation in stark black and white and we hope that now the Liberals Democrats will start listening to us. We are eager to do all we can to turn this situation round and work with the Administration to deliver better transport services for the people of Somerset,” pledged Anthony Trollope-Bellew.

Ends

Notes for Editors

The Department for Transport Report “Somerset County Council – Review of Transport Performance and Recommendations for Improvement” is available from the Transport Service at Somerset County Council.

For further information, please contact Anthony Trollope-Bellew, Conservative Group Spokesman on Environment & Transport, 01984 618254