Residents Get Road Resurfaced With Help From Their County Councillor

Published on: 18 Mar, 2019
Updated on: 21 Mar, 2019

A thorough resurfacing of Byrefield Road in Rydes Hill, Guildford has finally been completed after residents called their local county councillor to help them get the work done.

However, it has taken two years and a lot of effort, but has paid off with a properly resurfaced road and not one that has been ‘patched up’.

Surrey County Councillor Fiona White with Byrefield Road resident Simon Slater. He contacted Cllr White and organised the first open meeting to discuss the problems of the road.

Surrey County Councillor Fiona White (Lib Dem, Guildford West) was initially contacted by a resident saying he and his neighbours were concerned over buses running in both directions along Byrefield Road where parked cars on both sides meant there was no room for them to pass safely.

In addition, the concrete road with asphalt over the top was in a poor condition, with gaps between the old concrete slabs.

Fiona White said Byrefield Road was originally included in Surrey County Council’s Horizon – highway maintenance investment programme, “but then got bumped off the list”.

She added: “The residents and I had meetings with the bus company who, after looking at a lot of options, agreed to change one of its routes so that buses would only run down Byrefield Road and not both ways.

“We also worked together to put pressure on Surrey Highways to repair the road properly instead of just patching it. Patches wash away all the time.

“Our pressure on the county council included a petition, freedom of information requests, recording problems and emailing council officers regularly.

“Finally, the road has now been properly resurfaced. I am told by the contractors that there is even a cushion layer to stop vehicle vibrations. The contractors described it as a ‘Rolls Royce road’.”

Cllr Fiona White with some of the residents of Byrefield Road, plus Lib Dem Guildford Borough Councillors for the Stoughton ward, Pauline Searle and Gill Harwood.

Responses to Residents Get Road Resurfaced With Help From Their County Councillor

F Barker Reply

March 18, 2019 at 10:22 am

It’s a shame that the residents of Southway in Westborough don’t band together and complain about the road. It’s an absolute shambles. Huge potholes, inconsiderate parking and more buses than needed, running in both directions. I tried to navigate it a few days ago. It’s like driving in India.
C Nicholls Reply

March 18, 2019 at 11:45 am

Whilst I am not denying the impact of buses, I do not understand why drivers do not see their own part in this. The number of cars double parked down this road is ridiculous. There is no consideration at all for pedestrians, but the cars are huge.

Surely their weight must have some impact? There are now far more cars and far heavier cars than just a few years ago, the weight of which must have some impact on the surface. The family car is a thing of the past, instead, there are two/three cars per home. Why is everyone now driving Chelsea tractors in this built up residential part of Surrey? We are not living on unmade farm tracks, ruts or country lanes but good roads.

The number of vans and lorries on these roads is making dented ruts in the road surface, you can see where they have pulled off the road and parked on the pavement, so clearly their heavier weight these days is having an impact and costing us all a lot more in terms of pollution and the considerable costs of maintenance and repair.
Keith Witham Reply

March 20, 2019 at 10:37 am

Road resurfacing does not happen by chance. In 2013 the Conservatives at Surrey County Council (that’s right the “wicked Tories!”) proposed the creation of a £100m fund at SCC, for use over five years 2013-2018 for road resurfacing. And again in 2018 a further £20 million over two years.

What a pity that the Liberal Democrat’s, now claiming credit for this one road, did not support the council’s annual budgets for those years. Let’s give some credit to the Conservative council for enabling this to happen. To be fair to Fiona White she did at least thank the council at a meeting this week (a first!).

In my area, many roads have also been resurfaced as a result of that £120 million funding – Clay Lane and Woking Road at Jacobs Well, Frog Grove Lane at Wood Street Village, Guildford Road Normandy, Aldershot Road, Pirbright – and recently Salt Box Road in preparation for a full surface dressing – the list is too long to include them all.

So well done to the Conservative Surrey County Council for a good job, well done. Keep up the good work as there will always be another road that needs repair.

Keith Witham is the Conservative county councillor for Worplesdon
- Martin Elliott Reply
  
  March 20, 2019 at 1:03 pm
  
  Thanks to Cllr Witham for those well know figures but is he able to put them into context?
  
  1) Was the £20 million pa 2013-18, reduced to £10m pa for 2018-20, the total for road resurfacing (Project Horizon 1)or does that include potholes & pavements?
  
  2) Was any of this funding either normal government grant or a special “extreme weather” grant?
  
  3) For each of those years, what was the estimated cost of works necessary to bring all SCC highways & pavements to an acceptable standard, and how many years would it take?
  
  4) Can he explain how the Conservatives, in particular, have influenced the normal process of SCC Highways in classifying roads as needing repair, and then prioritising the annual lists of, what is now Project Horizon 2 (or is it now Operation Horizon?)?
  
  5) What other special government or SCC funds have been made available to enable councillors to assist personally with highway repair/resurfacing. eg Kingswood & Burwood Close.
- Jules Cranwell Reply
  
  March 20, 2019 at 4:35 pm
  
  The only part I agree with from this is, “the wicked Tories”.
  
  Yes, there is evil in bowing to developer pressure to destroy so much of our precious green belt and wreak havoc on the irreplaceable AONB, as they plan for Blackwell Farm.
  
  They are completely out of touch with what residents want.
  
  Time for a change!
Charlie Nicholls Reply

March 20, 2019 at 1:13 pm

But why do we only ever actually see any action just before council elections?
Wayne Smith Reply

March 20, 2019 at 2:31 pm

Cllr Witham is right, “road resurfacing doesn’t happen by chance”. Just ask Cllr Graham Ellwood who lobbied for the cul-de-sac where he lives to be resurfaced ahead of more pressing and heavily trafficked roads such as Bushy Hill Drive.

All reported in The Dragon last December.

https://guildford-dragon.com/2018/12/16/labour-says-tory-showed-scant-regard-for-others-when-he-asked-for-his-own-road-to-be-repaired/
Keith Witham Reply

March 20, 2019 at 2:34 pm

I would ask Charlie Nicholls to please read my earlier reply. The fund that paid for these works was started in 2013, and renewed in 2018. Roadworks happen throughout the year. It was a photo taken by the local Lib Dem team to claim (unjustified) credit for the resurfacing of that road in that ward, just before the borough elections!

Keith Witham is the Conservative county councillor for Worplesdon.
Fiona White Reply

March 20, 2019 at 10:14 pm

Well, if Cllr Witham wants a competition for getting roads done, here’s my list: Aldershot Road, Rydes Hill Road, Southway, Park Barn Drive (although that one needs doing again), Egerton Road and both ends of Cabell Road.

So he’s quite right – it’s not just one road. It’s years of campaigning and supporting residents, one road at a time.

While Keith Witham is out canvassing, he should just ask residents how well they think the Conservatives are doing at keeping the roads well maintained and repaired.

And he’s right that I did ask the cabinet member to pass on thanks to the highways team for Byrefield Road. I will always thank officers when they have done a good job.

Fiona White is the Lib Dem county councillor for Guildford West.
Keith Witham Reply

March 24, 2019 at 11:13 pm

For Charlie Nichols’ information, the SCC road resurfacing programme has been going since 2013.

For everyone else: Just one year on from announcing additional funding Conservative-run Surrey County Council has resurfaced more than 270 roads across Surrey so far.

The council invested an additional £20 million in a two-year programme to improve the roads across Surrey most in need of repair. This follows on from a £100 million Road resurfacing programme carried out from 2013-18 which saw some 350 miles of Surrey roads resurfaced.

The work done in the last year on more than 270 roads, is continuing to make a real difference for drivers. Motorists will continue to see the improvements being made to Surrey’s roads, which are among the busiest in the country, as this £20 million programme continues in the coming year. But most people don’t see just how much is being done, as we usually only see the roads we use or are near to us. So have a look at this link:

For the full Surrey wide map see:
https://news.surreycc.gov.uk/2019/03/20/map-video-more-than-270-roads-improved-in-first-year-of-20m-programme/

Locally in my area, roads that have benefitted include Bailes Lane, Normandy; Ash Road, Pirbright; plus Salt Box Road and Cumberland Avenue, Worplesdon. This follows on from those in previous years: Clay Lane and Woking Road, Jacobs Well, Frog Grove Lane, Wood Street Village, Guildford Road, Normandy, Aldershot Road, Pirbright – to name only some.

This is in addition to the many pavement improvements (which is a different improvement fund, also instigated by a Conservative Surrey County Council). Locally, new footpaths have been installed in Envis Way, Wallace Close and Fairlands Avenue, Fairlands, Glaziers Lane, Normandy and Broad Street, Wood Street Village.

It’s all very well the Liberal Democrats having a photo to claim credit for one road, but every year at Surrey County Council they vote against the council’s annual budget so they can say they opposed a council tax increase, but then also claim credit for any spending in their wards.

So a big thank you to Conservative Surrey County Council for all these road and pavement improvement programmes.

Keith Witham is a Conservative candidate for Worplesdon in the borough council elections to be held on May 2.
Robert Good Reply

May 2, 2019 at 9:52 am

Since moving to Guildford from London I have been astonished at how bad the roads are here. This is one of the wealthiest parts of one of the richest countries in the world. The council doesn’t even sweep the roads routinely. How do they spend all our ratepayers’ money?