UPDATE (9/1/23): PETITION AGAINST LABOUR-RUN COUNCIL'S CRAZY PROPOSALS ON PORTSWOOD HIGH STREET (BROADWAY)

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UPDATE (9/1/23)

Our Andrew Pope appears in the Daily Echo. We said that we would listen to residents and act on their concerns. The full article appears below (without the image used by the Daily Echo):

 

Former Councillor Andrew Pope
on BBC South Today

 

"‘Are you prepared to stand for council in May?’

This is the question being asked by Southampton Independents, a campaign group run by ex-independent councillor, Andrew Pope.

In his letter, which was hand-delivered to households in the city, Mr Pope called on people to ‘act’, in response to what he calls a ‘crazy’ road scheme in Portswood.

The letter reads: “Is enough enough? Will you act? Are you prepared to stand for council in May? Southampton needs Independent councillors. Will you join residents to stand up?”

Southampton City Council’s Portswood Broadway plans have attracted huge interest over the last three months, including petitions, council representations and media coverage.

Southampton Independents, who signed the now closed ‘SAY NO’ petition, claim that the petition’s 821 signatures only represented part of the total number of those who disagree with the plans.

Mr Pope said: “Southampton Independents have listened to residents and businesses. Their concerns must be listened to and the Council’s proposals for Portswood Broadway by the Labour-run Council must be abandoned.

“Because the vast majority of residents are opposed to the plans to close off part of the main road, causing chaos in the area, Southampton Independents

have listened and acted. We have signed the e-petition on the Council website.

“We have expressed the concerns of residents to councillors that you had to ‘sign up’ on the website first and that this put people off signing. Despite this

barrier, 821 people signed it before it closed on December 31.”

Councillor Eamonn Keogh, cabinet member for transport and district regeneration, said that the recent public consultation will ‘ultimately help shape’ the Portswood Corridor scheme.

He said: “As a council, we want to work with all interested parties to agree a scheme that can be supported and progressed.

“We are currently compiling a report which includes the results of the public consultation. The report, which will be made available in February, will outline key concerns and areas of support raised by the public and will include an officer recommendation on how to address these concerns.”

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Southampton Independents have listened to residents and businesses. Their concerns must be listened to and the Council's proposals for Portswood Broadway by the Labour-run Council and Labour Councilor Eamonn Keogh, must be abandoned.

 

We have signed the petition on the Council's e-Petition site.

 

We recommend that you also sign the petition. You only have to register a name and email address. So far, there are 812 signatures. 

 

Another e-petition in support of these damaging proposals for residents and businesses has achieved only one quarter of the number.

 

The petition against the proposals reads:

 

"We the undersigned petition the council to abandon the current proposal to close part of Portswood Broadway to through traffic.

The limited benefits of the proposed scheme will be far outweighed by significant and unacceptable adverse impact to local businesses and residential neighbourhoods which includes 3 Conservation Areas. There is already a traffic problem in the surrounding areas without potentially another 12,000 cars a day adding to the congestion and pollution. We all want a greener environment but shifting one problem and creating another i.e. traffic from an A road (a major road intended to provide large scale transport links within or between areas) to a residential area is NOT the answer."

Contact us to tell us what you think about these proposals and why the Labour-run is hammering motorists across the City.