Crunch meeting over Sadlers Farm delays (From Halstead Gazette)
Get involved: send your pictures, video, news and views by texting HG to 80360, or email us Click here for more details »
Crunch meeting over Sadlers Farm delays
9:40am Friday 29th June 2012 in South Essex news By Jacqueline McMillan
A CRISIS meeting will be held by council bosses and contractors over the Sadlers Farm roadworks.
The meeting will take place on Monday after Essex County Council admitted it had missed another deadline for the completion of the £63million project.
The two-year roadworks were designed to remodel the notorious Benfleet junction and improve journey times in south Essex.
But they were originally supposed to finish in the spring and then by yesterday, but both deadlines have passed and there are still no guarantees the work will be finished by the time the Olympic mountain bike event takes place at Hadleigh Farm, on August 11 and 12.
In an exclusive interview with the Echo, Derek Louis, county councillor responsible for highways, said the meeting between senior council staff and those from contractors Birse Civils would address concerns over how the project has been handled.
Mr Louis said: “The priority is to get the roadworks finished as quickly as possible, but obviously we will be looking at the issues which have caused this delay.
“We recognise there have been problems with the management of the scheme, and will be having a meeting to discuss this.
“I hope to be able to give more details about what there is left to be completed and when it will be done by after this meeting. This is a hugely complex project and we are very disappointed not to be able to finish it on time.”
Mr Louis said the council was unable to provide a reason for the delay and a new deadline for the project until after the meeting.
He is also in negotiations with Olympic bosses, who had originally requested the project was finished by June at the latest.
Mr Louis said: “We hope to be able to have the scheme finished prior to the Olympics, but the majority is operational and we are not anticipating trafiic flow problems.”
Comments(14)
streetboy75
says...
11:20am Fri 29 Jun 12
Ian P
says...
12:01pm Fri 29 Jun 12
perini
says...
12:16pm Fri 29 Jun 12
Ian P wrote:Harsh but fair!
"Mr Louis said: “The priority is to get the roadworks finished as quickly as possible, but obviously we will be looking at the issues which have caused this delay". Look no further than total incompetence on both sides.
SUFC1906
says...
12:24pm Fri 29 Jun 12
anon anon
says...
12:29pm Fri 29 Jun 12
wickman wrote:'NO' ?
WE HAVE A RIGHT TO NO WHEN THIS IS GOING TO BE FINISHED AS WE ARE PAYING FOR **** UP YET AGAIN
John T Pharro
says...
12:35pm Fri 29 Jun 12
perini wrote:With all the aggravation caused to so many people I think Ian P is being positively mild.
Ian P wrote:Harsh but fair!
"Mr Louis said: “The priority is to get the roadworks finished as quickly as possible, but obviously we will be looking at the issues which have caused this delay". Look no further than total incompetence on both sides.
Has anyone thought about all the additional problems that the people in Bowers Gifford have had to put up with any any funeral taking place. The roads are full of mud and the pavements from Bowers Gifford to Pitsea have been inches deep in mud.
Beyond doubt this us the worse road works ever.
Months back someone wrote they should make a film of this to show how not to run road works.
How very true and that was before the debacle Wednesday.
Shame on the Council and the contractors.
Hopefully this Birse lot never ever get another government contract.
fletch12107
says...
12:44pm Fri 29 Jun 12
Galaxy266
says...
2:34pm Fri 29 Jun 12
From what I observed from the state of the building site that's still there I would think they still have several months of work still to do. In no way can I see this project being anywhere finished by the time of the Olympics. I would give a more realistic complation date as being the end of this calendar year, or, even the beginning of 2013.
Oh, and needless to say, I didn't see anyone at all working on the job! You very rarely do.
jolllyboy
says...
4:24pm Fri 29 Jun 12
Last Poster
says...
5:03pm Fri 29 Jun 12
rob1806
says...
5:38pm Fri 29 Jun 12
John T Pharro
says...
6:05pm Fri 29 Jun 12
Last Poster wrote:Hope that the back up from Tarpots doesn't reach the roundabout because if it does we are back to square one.
I came down the A130 too, and I think it is nearly finished. Plus, on the near side, the feeder for the roundabout is seriously moving forward at a great rate of knots, plenty of men Highly visible and hard at it. It must depend on what time you come through. Mind you, the queue backing from Tarpots did not appear to back up much further than the magic roundabout, so what more can you wish for?
Plus remember what the real reason is for the A13 to A130 prority underpass is really about carrying the lorries north when the new port at Corringham opens.
Does anyone really believe all this was for easing traffic at Tarpots?
If that was the case a flyover onto Canvey from the A13 and dualing Canvey Way would have made far more sense.
caroljb
says...
9:51am Sat 30 Jun 12
WHY did this happen this late at night???
wickman says...
10:33am Fri 29 Jun 12