Mayor's scooter insight

Sir - R Barton (Letters, February 21), says that those at the council should ‘try riding a scooter.’ He will be pleased to learn that’s exactly how I travel locally.

However, I do not claim that gives me any special insight into the state of the roads.

Like all local residents, I know that they are in a very poor condition.

As has been widely documented, this is due to years and years of Conservative County Council neglect of the borough’s roads, a position from which they have been recovering until the worst winter weather for 30 years caused a nationwide road maintenance crisis.

Thanks to a Liberal Democrat budget amendment, which I proposed before I became Mayor, there is an extra £1 million in this year’s budget for road repairs.

This extra funding was opposed by the Conservatives, but thankfully it was approved due to the casting vote of the late Frank Branston.

I have also allocated an extra £200,000 to help tackle the winter crisis – as far as this year’s resources could possibly stretch.

Next year’s budget includes £5.9 million for road maintenance, more than double the amount identified by the Government as ‘necessary’ for the roads in our borough. I will also be lobbying the Government for support to tackle what is a national road maintenance crisis caused by the dreadful recent weather.

I have spent years campaigning for better road maintenance in Bedford Borough – as Mayor I will not pass up the opportunity to do all I can to make sure we have safe, high quality streets and pavements for all residents.