Hollingworth Bypass

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New documents on the Public Inquiry website
2007-05-17 23:32:00
TMBC have published their Environmental Statement (ES) on the Public Inquiry website.The ES covers the 'Glossop Spur' only and it's nearly 2 years old already. As we've pointed out previously, there is no ES for the 'Bypass & Spur', since that scheme does not actually exist, other than in the minds of John Watson and the Secretary of State.It will be interesting to see how this 'mashup' plays out at the PI
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Bounced out of Tintwistle - the pitfalls of campaigning on a 'pro-bypass ti
2007-05-16 23:31:00
One of the more spectacular casualties of the local elections was Joyce Brocklehurst - a Labour Party Councillor, former mayor and very vocal in her support for the bypass.She made no secret of her support for it, and unlike many of her fellow Councillors (and candidates for that matter) campaigned on the bypass.And she was duly dumped by the electorate in Tintwistle.If you read this article in the Glossop Advertiser, she's very contrite:I am going to crack on and do what I can to get a community centre for Tintwistle, work to improve our traffic problems and most importantly see what can be done about these unsightly buildings.The 'unsightly buildings' are of course, Bridge Mills and Rossington Park.But people in Tinsle know all about her. Back in 2001 at a public meeting, she was mewling and puking openly about the need for a bypass, and also revealed some contradictions:We have quite a lot of factories on the waterside. We are trying to get funding from the Government to help ...
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Ivan Bell...again
2007-05-14 19:53:00
Further to yesterday's post, Councillor Bell 's letter in the Chronicle is markedly different than that in the Advertiser. Again, here it is verbatim:I wish to thank all the voters in Old Glossop for supporting Independent Councillor Chris Webster and myself. There have been a lot of changes to the High Peak Borough Council this election and I hope that the 'in power' Conservative Party will recognise the expertise and commitment of two hardworking, honest, non-party councillors who have been returned virtually unopposed in Old Glossop.Unti April 7, 2006, our unelected Peak District National Park Authority Council had supported the Longendale Bypass. However, the officers of this quango had decided that the residents of Tintwistle, Hollingworth and Mottram should continue to suffer the continuing traffic problems by brining (sic) a motion before the April Council 2006 meeting to change policy and object to it. Unfortunately, no recorded vote was taken, indeed the names of the pro...
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Join the dots
2007-05-13 22:46:00
Whilst we know that Labour Party Councillors (if not their members) are fully behind the bypass (and we needn't even talk about the Tories), some people might have hopes of independent councillors.But that's all dispelled in a letter from Ivan Bell to this week's Glossop Advertiser. Once again, we will reproduce it verbatim below:I wish to thank all the voters in Old Glossop for supporting Independent Councillor Chris Webster and myself. There have been a lot of changes to the High Peak Borough Council this election and I hope that the powers that be in the Conservative Party will recognise the expertise and commitment of two hardworking, honest, non-party councillors who have been returned virtually unopposed in Old Glossop.I have many things to do as a councillor, but most importantly, at the Public Inquiry on the bypass at Stalybridge I will be asking the inspector to give weight to the opinions of people who live in the villages of Mottram, Hollingworth and Tintwistle.And to ...
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2+2=5?
2007-05-10 22:17:00
It seems that following our post on Saturday last, Longdendale Siege Mentality have been going all out to make up the numbers in the largely redundant respective online petitions.Have a look now and spot some (in)famous names (& thankfully not faces) from Siege meetings, as well as the creator of this static, moribund website (where time truly stands still). Tameside Councillors are strangely absent though, as is the 'Chief' (copyright D Jones, Glossop Chronicle) Mike Flynn. The presence of 'Deputy Dog' also clearly lends credibility to the efforts of this shower.Someone should mention to them - TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE. According to certain contrary souls, the supporters numbers are 'unprecedented'* in any Public Inquiry. Well, that must make the objection numbers 'un-fucking-precedented', because we have 30% more, as we demonstrated last week. Do your homework sonny!*The term 'Unprecedented' can be applied to the objectors to the Weymouth Relief Road, where there are nearly ...

Meat & Potatoes
2007-05-10 22:00:00
At last, the respective cases case for the Longdendale Bypass & Glossop Spur have been published today. The Highways Agency Statement of Case can be found here and here, and the TMBC Statement of Case here (all links open PDFs).It should be noticed that these are not 'proofs of evidence' which the HA openly admitted may not be submitted by the deadline. TMBC could also not give a firm commitment to having their evidence ready in time. The deadline is 5th June (3 weeks before the start of the Inquiry) - we await it with baited breath.
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At last, somebody fed the slot meter...
2007-05-09 19:39:00
...on Persona's ISP yesterday morning. Subsequently, the Pre-Inquiry Meeting notes and transcript of the day are now available (both links download PDF).
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Problem loading page
2007-05-06 22:40:00
Who smells a rat? For the past few days, activists have been trying to access the Public Inquiry website, in particular to find out if the minutes from Tuesday's Pre-Inquiry Meeting are available yet. Try it and this is what you get:We know it's a bank holiday weekend, but this is ridiculous. And the same goes for anyone else who's having their Public Inquiry managed by this crew because the whole site is down.Whilst we're hardly likely to point out that it's a conspiracy that one can't access the site, it certainly suits those in favour of the scheme.Objectors are still unclear about exactly what they have to do to ensure their objections are valid for the PI, and at the same time we are all receiving confusing & intimidating letters from the Highway Agency with their own instructions.And for the cynical amongst us, it begs the question exactly what kind of result we can expect to result from this whole charade when the consultants are incompetent and the Inspector's whole c...
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Numbers game
2007-05-05 23:33:00
Unlike this week's Advertiser, yesterday's Glossop Chronicle doesn't treat us to a report of the Pre-Inquiry meeting. In fact, the tables set aside for the press on Tuesday were strangely empty. It's even more odd given that the offices of the Reporter Group Newspapers are a 2 minute walk away.But to compound this odd behaviour, there's a large article this week on the relative pro and anti bypass petitions on the PM's website which we highlighted in an earlier post. And clearly, some people read the paper, because the numbers on either are rising.Longdendale Siege Mentality (their new name around here) do have a long way to go though. This is because the latest figures for letter of objection and support for the bypass have been published, though not as openly as the Highways Agency proclaim in this letter (which the wind blew into our hand). Indeed, at the date of writing, the information is yet to be displayed on their Freedom of Information pages, as promised (presumably b...
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Counsel for TMBC: Martin Carter
2007-05-04 21:28:00
First up in the 'establishment spotlight' is TMBC's barrister at the Pre-Inquiry Meeting (PIM), Martin Cart er.At the PIM, Carter (a member of the Planning & Environment Bar Association) announced that he would be appearing only at the PIM, and that his colleague, John Barrett would be conducting the Inquiry.Of course, we all know that lawyers accept all kinds of cases, sometimes appearing as advocates for both sides of a particular cause. And Carter is no exception. Although it is interesting to note that he has backed some causes we'd approve of and that are somewhat relevant here: resisting Compulsory Purchase Orders and fighting cases where Village Greens are under threat.On Tuesday, he came across as somewhat less incompetent than Charles Calvert (for the HA), but admitted that TMBC were 'working towards' submitting their evidence for the deadline of 5th June. He also said he 'didn't know' what the extent of the information that was available on the combined environment...

More visitors
2007-05-03 20:53:00
After the Prime Minister's Office popped in a few weeks ago, we're now getting visits from our principal opponents. Today, it's the turn of Mouchel Parkman, who stopped by twice today.This is the crew that TMBC and Derbyshire CC employed to produce an Environmental Statement for the Glossop Spur, which was the subject of much debate on Tuesday. This is because it's now out of date and there currently doesn't seem to be any reliable data for the environmental impacts of the Bypass & Spur together, so the boys and girls at MP must be hard at work trying to scrape something together for their deadline.So much so that they've decided to concentrate of the real work of building a road instead, and promptly left this blog to head over to Amazon, perhaps to get hold of John Watson's "text book" (his words on Tuesday).
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Post Inquiry Meltdown...
2007-05-02 22:11:00
Yesterday was a rather ominous portent of things to come in this campaign. It's easier to make a list of the issues and comment on them:An Inspector seemingly out of his depth - unaware of crucial aspects of law such as PPS7 (calling it 'PPS5'), clearly inexperienced and without an assistant to help. Less than firm with the Highways Agency who had the gall to admit they might miss a (statutory) deadline for submission of their evidence. Expressed only mild dissatisfaction that Inquiry Libraries were at either end of the bypass (Stocksbridge & Stalybridge) and nowhere near those most affected by the scheme - Mottram, Hollingworth, Tintwistle & Glossop (the Highways Agency showing their utter contempt for those of us who want to do research, both for and against the scheme). He clearly reads this blog though, because he declined to sign copies of his book!Unsuitable venue - a large old stone-floored market hall. Appalling acoustics. Much time wasted passing around a microphone...
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The Highways Agency & your 'Statement of Case'
2007-04-30 20:42:00
Those of us who have objected to the bypass should by now have received a letter from the Highway s Agency which asks you to provide a "statement of case by the 15th of June" which you "propose to put forward at the Public Inquiry ".Firstly - Don't Panic! You do not have to appear in person if you do not wish to. Your objection remains an objection unless you withdraw it - DO NOT DO THIS & do not be intimidated into thinking you have to do anything else at all.But if you are willing to come along to the Pre-Inquiry Meeting tomorrow and want to speak at the Public Inquiry itself later on, then you will have a chance to say so. The more people that do this, the better. It's important that the strength of feeling is known (for what it's worth). It could seriously clog things up, and more delays, means less chance of funding for the scheme if the HA win (if, like me, you're cynical and think this thing is all sewn up).If you want to speak at the Public Inquiry, but can't make it, the...
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Roy Oldham: Woodhead chameleon
2007-04-28 22:09:00
Those against the Longdendale Bypass are fully aware that its successful completion will make the extension of the M67 motorway much more likely.Yet it's a little known fact that our very own Roy Oldham was very much against the closure of the Woodhead railway line for the very same reason. And in 1980, Oldham spoke out publicly against the possibility of an extension of the M67 at a Public Inquiry into the closure of the line. It's recounted in Railroaded: Battle for the Woodhead Pass (ISBN 0-571-13909-4), a book by Simon Bain. Text from the passage that deals with Oldham is reproduced below (if you don't believe me, the pages can be viewed here):On the final afternoon there was an unscheduled appearance by the Leader of Tameside Council, Roy Oldham. He said the GMC was looking at cutting its transport budget by £3.7 million because of government cuts, and the local rail services were an obvious target. But the whole of the Longdendale and west Manchester area naturally commuted...
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Roy Oldham: 'He wears a Crown and builds a new road'
2007-04-28 22:09:00
The Dark Lord has spoken, and Longdendale cowers: our Nemesis, Roy Oldham , has placed himself centre stage at this crucial time with a letter this week to the Reporter Group Newspapers (Tameside Reporter & Glossop Chronicle).To show how even handed we are, it's regurgitated verbatim below: 'Ban plan has so many flaws' As we approach the long overdue Public Inquiry for a decision to be made on this piece on infrastructure, the antibodies are still pushing the threadworn and hypocritical suggestion of alternatives such as a HGV ban on the A628. They are vastly aware that this suggestion is flawed in a number of ways. First the cross-Pennine traffic consists of more private cars than HGVs. Secondly, they will not put the argument against traffic that arises in the Peak Park and the tourist traffic that visits the towns and park areas. A significant traffic flow moves in and out of the Peak Park, HGVs from the quarries and cement works, private vehicles taking Peak Park residents in...
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John Watson - book signing dates announced
2007-04-25 21:56:00
All you engineering students out there, get yourself down to Stalybridge Civic Hall next Tuesday (1st May) if you want your copy of J P Watson 's fantastic Highway Construction and Maintenance*The author will be present and will be happy to record his best wishes for posterity to all his ardent fans (especially TMBC Councillors, Highways Agency et al).NB - it should be noted that the author intends to proceed immediately afterwards to conduct a Public Inquiry in a totally impartial manner. The fact he has written a book detailing modern road construction methods does not indicate any partiality, and in no way can he be described as a 'tarmac head'. *Highway Construction and Maintenance (Paperback) by J.P. Watson (Author) Paperback: 248 pagesPublisher: Longman; 2Rev Ed edition (22 Aug 1994)Language EnglishISBN-10: 0582234123ISBN-13: 978-0582234123
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Purnell's bleating in the Chronicle again
2007-04-12 22:10:00
Purnell 'prematurely' begins work on the bypass. Is he premature in other respects too we wonder?But he can't quite manage a front page like last week's article on the Peak District National Park objecting to the bypass. Though I'm in danger of boring you all to death, here's his letter in full:"Bypass is now the only answer"I write in response to your front page story last week regarding the Peak District National Park Authority and the Mottram-Hollingworth-Tintwistle Bypass.I must insist that the record is set straight on the issue of possible alternatives to the bypass. All alternatives - including an HGV ban and major public transport improvements - have already been carefully analysed and rejected as being inadequate.The forecasts showed that an HGV ban would only reduce the traffic flow in Mottram by two per cent. It is no longer enough for those who oppose then bypass to offer empty rhetoric in place of a solution. My constituents need relief from the traffic coming pas...
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