A councillor who organised a petition against the introduction of a new bus lane in Preston says the decision to press ahead with the scheme will cause “significant disruption” to residents and businesses.
Suleman Sarwar was reacting to the announcement that work on the city’s latest bus-priority measure – on New Hall Lane – will begin on Thursday (January 2). More than 360 locals put their names to a petition sent to Lancashire County Council objecting to the overhaul after the authority’s cabinet members gave it the green light back in May.
Cllr Sarwar, who represents the St. Matthew’s ward on Preston City Council, had called for the new layout to be trialled in order to demonstrate its effect on traffic along the notoriously busy route – warning that it could worsen congestion. However, highways bosses said it was not possible to take an “experimental” approach to the project and have now confirmed that installation of the bus lane – which will operate between Fishwick Road and Witton Street – is poised to get under way later this week.
They say the aim is to improve the reliability of bus services on the route. But Cllr Sarwar said he was “deeply disappointed” that the changes were going ahead in spite of “strong public opposition”.
He added: “It feels as though the genuine concerns of the local community have been ignored in favour of a decision that risks causing significant disruption to residents and businesses along New Hall Lane. Many residents have voiced their complaints about this project, yet these concerns appear to have been met with silence or vague responses.
“Decisions of this scale require council officers to be accessible and transparent, but unfortunately, this has not been the case here. The lack of meaningful engagement with the community is particularly frustrating”.
“This decision has left many residents feeling unheard and undervalued. I would urge Lancashire County Council to reflect on how they’ve handled this process and take steps to address the community’s concerns more effectively moving forward,” Cllr Sarwar said.
A formal public consultation carried out by County Hall – which predated the petition – attracted just three responses, all of which were from people opposing the plans. Cllr Sarwar also questioned whether the income generated from fines issued to drivers for breaching the new rules will be “reinvested” in road and other infrastructure in and around New Lane – or be “absorbed into other council budgets”.
The county council has previously insisted that cash from penalty charge notices handed out for bus lane and bus gate contraventions is ploughed back into the county’s road network – but has not committed to spending the money in the vicinity of where it was raised.
A County Hall spokesperson said in response to Cllr Sarwar’s comments: “Improvements to bus service delivery at the New Hall Lane junction were first considered in 2022, as part of HM Government’s Bus Service Improvement Plan funding allocation. We carried out an extensive public consultation between 19th January and 16th February last year, which involved letters being sent to directly affected properties, notices on lighting columns, information in the local press and on our website, and details being sent to local councillors.
“However, the bus lane won’t become enforceable straight away once the works are complete, and we’ll make sure to inform residents and visitors to the city before it does. All monies recovered from enforcement of any scheme are reinvested into improving our highways and road infrastructure.”
The authority usually offers a grace period when introducing new camera-monitored bus-only restrictions, during which it issues warning letters to motorists who fall foul of the system. Nevertheless, the revenue raised from fines is often significant during the early stages of any new arrangements.
Almost £1.6m was paid out by motorists in the first five months that the new bus gate on Preston’s Corporation Street was in operation after enforcement began in June.
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