Yahoo News Event to celebrate unfinished cycle path pushed back as 'abysmal' rollout is blasted
An event to celebrate the completion of part of an unfinished 26-mile cycle path in Gloucestershire has been postponed as civic chiefs blast its “abysmal” rollout. Gloucestershire County Council had arranged for an event with light refreshments to take place today (September 16) at the GL3 Community Hub to celebrate the completion of the Churchdown stretch of the Gloucestershire Cycle Spine.
When the whole route is completed, people will be able to hop on their bikes and ride from Gloucester city centre to Bishop's Cleeve, without once having to touch the main road. This non-stop cycle and walking route is the largest of its kind in the country and is part of a wider movement to reduce carbon emissions.
Council leaders had arranged the celebration in Churchdown to coincide with Cycle September and encourage more people to ride bikes. But the work to install the Churchdown section of the path has had its fair share of problems and setbacks.
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And they now claim they postponed the event due to the weather having the potential to delay the resurfacing scheme in the area. County Councillor Ben Evans (LD, Churchdown) was surprised the event had been planned as the cycle path had not been finished.
"I must say I was amazed to be informed that there was an event to celebrate the completion of the cycle path, mainly because it has not been completed! It seems a strange thing to do," he said.
“As a representative for the people of Churchdown, I am also not sure whether they would agree the abysmal implementation deserves to have money spent 'celebrating' whilst people are still waiting to have the promised parking and safety measures installed. I think we will all just be relieved when it's over."
Councillor Stewart Dove (LD), who represents Churchdown St John's ward on Tewkesbury Borough Council said the County Council should focus on fixing the issues affecting the rollout the cycle path. "Everyone agrees improving cycling and walking routes is a good thing,” he said.
“Myself and the whole team of local councillors are still receiving concerns, however, about the safety of the route in places, such as where the cycle route intersects with bus stops. I think ironing out those issues should take precedence over premature self-congratulation"
A spokesperson for Gloucestershire County Council said: “Due to the weather forecast which has the potential to delay the resurfacing scheme in the area we have taken the decision to postpone this event. It had been arranged to link with Cycle September and encourage more people to get on their bikes and take advantage of the cycle spine that we are building through the county.
“We will be rescheduling this event for a later date.”
