Birmingham’s “bankrupt” council has been accused of wasting almost £10 million on a cycle highway that is wider than a bus lane.
The multi-million pound cycle lane was opened in 2019, but motorists say it has been barely used and is a prime example of the authority’s financial incompetence.
On Sept 5, the Labour-run council issued a section 114 notice, meaning it cannot meet its financial liabilities amid an outstanding £760 million of equal pay claims.
The council, which is Europe’s largest local authority, confirmed all but essential new spending must stop immediately.
Locals have since highlighted a number of examples of shocking wastes of money that have contributed to the town hall bosses’ perilous position.
They include a 2.5 mile “cycle highway” along the A34 – one of the busiest commuter routes into the city – which has been barely used by cyclists since opening four years ago.
Road users say the lane, between the city centre and Perry Barr, causes complete gridlock at rush hour and forces the bus lane farther into the road.
It means parts of the road have been left with just one lane for cars, while in other sections the cycle lane slices into the pavement.
Photographs taken on Wednesday show bumper-to-bumper gridlock with the bike lane sitting empty and one cyclist even ignoring it to ride down the main road instead.
Residents say the £9.85 million route only brought commuter chaos in an already over-congested city and cyclists continue to ride along the pavement or road. Birmingham City Council also forked out £16 million moving a National Express bus depot just 300 metres in time for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
The original facility was to make way for an athletes’ village – which never even materialised and was turned instead into affordable housing.
‘Example of Labour incompetence’
The cost was even highlighted at the time in the House of Commons by Conservative MP Gary Sambrook, who represents Birmingham Northfield.
He said in January 2021: “In Birmingham, the city council originally budgeted £2 million to move a bus depot.
“That escalated to £16 million, which local people are going to have to pay, all to achieve a move down the road of only 300 metres.
“Is that not just a perfect example of Labour incompetence in local government?”
It also emerged that the council ignored advice not to host the Commonwealth Games despite serious financial difficulties.
Birmingham resident Emily Hill, 45, a mum-of-three and sales adviser, said: “I live in Perry Barr where in the last few years there has been some shocking wastes of cash.
“It is no surprise the council find themselves in this position having splashed £10 million on a cycle lane nobody uses and £16 million on moving a bus depot.
“The cycle lane is only a couple of miles long and reduces traffic to a single lane, causing absolute gridlock. It was a ridiculous decision.
“Cyclists use the main road or pavement anyway, it has made no difference at all. If anything it has made traffic worse.”
Dad-of-one Paul Turner, 36, an electrician from Kingstanding, Birmingham, added: “The people of this city have seen this coming for a while so it’s no surprise really.
“Their financial difficulties have been well publicised for a long time yet we went ahead and hosted the games even when they were warned not to.
“That cycle lane is a prime example of how out-of-touch these people are with reality and £16 million moving a bus depot that didn’t need moving is just farcical.
“It’s no wonder they got into such a mess and it’s the people of this city who will now probably suffer as a result of their financial incompetence.”
‘We need far fewer cars on the road’
A spokesman for Birmingham Council said: “Birmingham is a fantastic place to live, work and visit but we need people to use sustainable modes of transport when travelling – public transport, walking and cycling. In short, we need far fewer cars on the road.
“As a city, we have been far too reliant on private cars for far too long and we need to fundamentally change the way we move people and goods around the city.
“We must re-allocate road space so that pedestrians, buses and bikes are prioritised and drastically reduce the number of journeys people make by car. Cycle lanes are clearly a key part of this.”
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiYWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRlbGVncmFwaC5jby51ay9uZXdzLzIwMjMvMDkvMDcvYmFua3J1cHQtYmlybWluZ2hhbS1jaXR5LWNvdW5jaWwtYmlrZS1sYW5lLXdhc3RlLTEwbS_SAQA?oc=5
2023-09-07 16:54:00Z
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