Entrepreneur calls for ASBO on road bosses
A Gloucestershire business owner is so fed up with the disruption caused by roadworks on his journey to and from work he has demanded that an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO) be served on the two officials responsible for traffic management in the area.
Andrew Barr, owner of 10 Yetis Public Relations, claims the commuting time from his home in the Forest of Dean to Gloucester city centre has tripled during the past few months as a result of roadworks on the A40.
Barr alleges that documents sent to local residents to explain the reasons for the work contain "computer manipulated" images which make "the situation on the old A40 road look more bleak than was really the case".
The entrepreneur had demanded that an official investigation be launched into the matter and ASBOs be served on David Sledge of the Highways Agency and Jo Walker, director of traffic management at Gloucestershire County Council.
"I fully accept that the work now needs finishing but it is vital that we discover if the information used to get the work agreed and underway was falsified in any way in order to prevent this from happening again," Barr said.
"I do think lessons need to be learned from what has happened and how we have arrived at the farcical situation where an entire community, and one which contributes greatly to the Gloucestershire economy, has been treated so poorly by the County Council that is supposed to be representing its best interests.
"If this is the case then I think that the best way to prevent this from happening again would be to serve an ASBO on the two people involved."
In a statement given to BusinessZone.co.uk, Jo Walker said the roadworks are required because the surface has "worn out" and "major reconstruction involving digging out the road and installing new drainage" is needed. She added that effort has also been made to assist commuters through alternatives such as car sharing and increased public transport.
Walker concluded: "We know this work is causing disruption and I would like to thank motorists once again for their patience while this essential scheme is completed."
The council refused to comment on Barr's allegation that images of the road were manipulated to justify the work.
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AccountingWEB.co.uk - 2-Sep-2008
Categories: News
Story read: 2260
