Dear Editor, We have heard so much recently from our Government about the need for councils to cut costs.
Reductions in grants from central government have been cited as the reasons why it is necessary to cut front line services.
All of us who live in Birmingham cannot help but be appalled by the state of our local roads, particularly those that carry the high volumes of traffic.
Road users are constantly having to take evasive action to avoid the numerous pot-holes that have appeared following the harsh winter. It was with some relief therefore that we learned in last month’s Budget of a fund to be made available to local authorities to mend our damaged highways.
Last week, residents of Chartwell Drive, a short, approximately 300-metre long cul-de-sac off the Walsall Road in Sutton Coldfield were somewhat surprised to receive a visit by a team of workmen with heavy road mending equipment.
The road was closed for two days whilst the top layer was stripped off to be replaced by a new layer of tarmac.
Whilst it is good to see that Birmingham City Council is spending money on Sutton’s roads, would not the money have been better spent on the main highways where the need is urgent rather than on a small local road which is mainly used by just a handful of residents and which, to the casual observer, had no obvious pot-holes or other defects?
Neil Andrews
By email
