After a member made a freedom of information
request we have gained a better understanding of how
the contract works between IWC and Island Roads with
regards the maintenance of the cycle tracks. Like many
of you we have become
very concerned at the
state of the tracks, as they
are not only used by a
large number of residents
but visitors too. In October
the Red Squirrel Trail was
featured in the Guardian
as one of the 10 Best
Cycle Trails in Britain.
Thinking of the state of the
track at Merstone it would
be like inviting your friend
round to your house and
the first thing they saw
were lots of holes in the carpet which had the potential
to trip them up.
In our view there are three issues.
1. The inspection process, results and how they are
acted upon by Island Roads.
2. The difference in approach to sealed and unsealed
surfaces.
3. The issue that funding appears to be needed by IWC
to repair the shortcomings in the surface.
Maintenance standards are based on an
aggregate score for a whole area so sections in poor
condition are not necessarily repaired as overall the
area meets the 'score' of the contract. From our
correspondence the Council is seeking funding to bring
the poor sections up to an acceptable standard. We are
seeking further clarification at the time of the writing of
the newsletter. We have asked, as before, to
accompany an inspection to better understand the
criteria as none of the sections failed.