R4GV Announces Success In Cross-Party Request For Review Of Walnut Bridge Decision

Published on: 15 Jan, 2020
Updated on: 17 Jan, 2020

A new twist over plans for the proposed new Walnut Bridge and also the Bedford Plaza in Guildford town centre has emerged.

The Residents for Guildford & Villages party (R4GV) reports on its website (Wednesday, January 15) that its councillors on the borough council has led a successful cross-party request for calling-in last week’s Executive decision on the Walnut Bridge and Bedford Plaza Public Realm works.

R4GV says its request for a review of the decision has been agreed by the chairman of the council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee and the Monitoring Officer.

The R4GV website states: “The next step is for a special meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee to be convened within 21 days. This is the first call-in request since 2012.”

It also states: “The decision in question is that the Executive resolved: That a virement of £450,000 be transferred from the capital contingency fund for the Walnut Bridge Project.

“That the Bedford Plaza Public Realm works be incorporated within the Walnut Bridge Project.

“That £350,000 be transferred from the provisional to approved capital budget to fund the public realm work.

R4GV Cllr Deborah Seabrook (Merrow) has added: “R4GV agree that the current bridge and Bedford Wharf area are unattractive and do not provide the right gateway to the town for rail passengers.

“However, we are concerned about the escalating costs, the design, and the potential to hamper the nascent Town Centre Masterplan. We welcome the opportunity to look at these aspects in greater detail to ensure best value for residents’ money.”

Click here for our previous story. Council Agrees Extra £450,000 To Build Replacement Walnut Bridge.

Responses to R4GV Announces Success In Cross-Party Request For Review Of Walnut Bridge Decision

Alan Davies Reply

January 16, 2020 at 10:56 am

Well done R4GV and other councillors for questioning the Walnut Bridge.

This new bridge has been on the council drawing board for years but Guildford has nothing to show.

How much has been spent so far and on what? Do we really need to budget £3.4 million to build a concrete slab bridge?

Is the extra £450,000 on top of £3.4 million or has that budget figure gone up anyway?

How long will a new bridge take to build and will users have to go along Bridge Street meanwhile?

Public works always cost more and take longer than the original budget and estimates.

We need to know more about what, why , how much and when for the bridge. Otherwise, the council leader’s enthusiasm for openness and transparency doesn’t mean much.