We are continuing to work hard with the Response2Route Group to prevent our Newbridge Meadows and their green corridor being destroyed by the implementation of the Bus Rapid Transit [BRT] proposals.


Here is a summary of what is happening.

Department For Transport [DfT] Funding for the Bath Transportation Package [BTP]
The Council have to prove to the DFT that the BTP (including the BRT) is the best possible scheme for the money. We are very busy proving to the DFT that the BRT element is definitely not the best possible scheme for the money and, a joint submission with the R2R Group has been made to the DfT details of which will be made available on this website shortly.

We believe that B&NES Council is trying to rush their submission through to the DfT before Easter. As the deadline is not until September, we assume it sees some benefit in doing this. In any case B&NES no longer has time to alter the scheme so it's all or nothing for the BTP. We believe they are going to lose all of the central funding because of their inflexible approach.

B&NES Council is stubbornly refusing to investigate alternatives and provide the government with proof that they have done proper research into the alternatives or any cost-benefit analysis. This is worrying to us as we know there are elements of the BTP which would be of benefit to Bath but, they will all be lost if B&NES’ inflexible approach means that the DfT refuse to grant any funding at all.

We know that the alternatives of siting a Park and Ride Car Park at Twerton Fork on the southern side of the river and using the Upper and Lower Bristol Roads for the BRT buses instead of the proposed new segregated stretch of road, is easily adapted, saving both money and destruction, and delivering benefits to the areas stated by the council to be “deprived.”

B&NES have now set up a “Transport Commission‟ to advise them further on the BTP, consisting of people and bodies who have already stated they support the BRT. The Response2Route Group have not been invited to participate, despite asking to be allowed to do so and having now spent more than 4 years becoming expert in all things transport-related in Newbridge.

Village Green applications
As readers will know from previous postings, an application was submitted on behalf of Newbridge Matters for the Newbridge Meadows Village Green to be Registered as such and, details of the Non- Statutory Public Inquiry for the Newbridge Meadows are shown in the previous posting.

Although if granted, the Registration of the Village Greens would almost 100% prevent the areas from being developed, the primary reason for seeking Registration is to ensure that they continue to be available for this and future generations to enjoy.

These Village Green spaces have been used for over 20 years by local people for recreational activities which means they are already Village Greens. We are simply seeking to get that status officially recognised through a formal process.

Response2Route and Newbridge Matters have applied for Village Green status on three areas of land. The applications have been moving forward and we now have dates for the two Non-Statutory Public Inquiries that will be held into the two applications submitted by the R2R Group. All these Inquiries are required to be held as the Council have objected to our applications.

All three Inquiries will be held in the Council Chamber at The Guildhall in Bath, the dates being as shown below:

Newbridge Meadows…11th - 14th April 2011…..Full details as shown on the previous posting.

Rudmore Park…………23rd - 26th May 2011…..Full details not yet known

Kaynton Mead…………13th – 16th June 2011….Full details not yet known



Members of the public are strongly urged to come along to support us at all the Public Inquiries.

Newbridge Matters has obtained Proofs of Evidence of the use of the Meadows Village Green for use at the Inquiry and the R2R Group has been busy putting together evidence to make sure they are fully prepared for their inquiries.

We need local residents to speak at the inquiries – without witnesses we will fail. There are very few of us on the committee who fulfil the criteria to be a witness. We need to prove that the Village Greens have been used by the community overall for a period of at least 20 years, for lawful leisure pursuits.

If you are a member of the community and you have used the Village Greens for any period of time, we need you – please get in touch!

If you cannot attend the Inquiries in person due to a holiday or other commitment please contact us as we can arrange for your submission to be read out by someone else. All witnesses will be fully briefed by our advocate who has experience of many dozens of such inquiries.

Don’t assume we have plenty of other people to do this – we need YOU!

If you work full-time this will not be a problem as there should be at least one evening session built into the schedule to accommodate those of us who do.

Any photographic or other evidence showing leisure pursuits on any of the areas over the last 20 years will be extremely useful and will be gratefully received. Please email to: r2rnewsletter@aol.com

If you do not qualify as a witness but have any interest in seeing our Village Green applications succeed, please support us by coming along and watching the process from the public viewing gallery in the Council Chamber at The Guildhall.

The inquiries have to be run along semi-formal lines in order to reach an official conclusion but most people who attend them enjoy the experience.

A report on the Village Greens has been published in The Bath Chronicle newspaper, edition of Thursday 24th March page 38.

Compulsory Purchase Orders [CPOs] Public Inquiry
Regardless of B&NES’ plans to keep the BTP in its entirety to submit to the Government for funding, the Public Inquiry into the Compulsory Purchase Orders will still need to take place, as if B&NES wish to proceed with the work using Government funding, they need to be in possession of all the necessary land required for the work. We are working hard to put together our dossier of evidence and will be employing expert witnesses to counteract the Council’s arguments.
Local Elections
It is likely that the BRT will feature in the local elections and it will be to your advantage to quiz your prospective Councillors on their views. Some are not as opposed to the BRT as you may assume.

Funding
We have contracted experts to help us in all the above and this costs money. If you would like to help you can donate via PayPal on the R2R web site www.response2route.co.uk or send a cheque made payable to Response2Route to the R2R Treasurer at 43 Ashley Avenue, Bath BA1 3DS.
We thank you for your continued support.
Response2Route www.response2route.co.uk

Newbridge Matters http://www.newbridgematters.blogspot.com/

Readers will be aware that our last posting was to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year. We hope you had both.


As no further postings have been made you could be forgiven for thinking that your team at Newbridge Matters had gone on an extended Christmas holiday and had not yet returned.

However, that is very far from the truth. We have been working very hard indeed with many different authorities in order to try and ensure that Newbridge is provided with the very best possible outcome concerning the Council’s proposals for the Bus Rapid Transit [BRT] system including the proposed Park and Ride Car Park. We thought that time spent on those activities had priority over time spent on postings and, apologise to readers who may think otherwise.

Bath Rapid Transit system.

A member of our team together with representatives of Response to Route [R2R] group. met the city’s MP the Rt Hon. Don Foster on Monday 21st February 2011.

The serious concerns of those in Newbridge relating to the proposed Car Park on the Village Green at Newbridge Meadows and, those of residents directly affected by the proposed New Road as part of the BRT through resident’s gardens, and others, were made known to Don Foster. He promised to pass these on to the DfT.
If B&NES Council wish to obtain money from the Government in order to carry out their proposals contained within the Bath Transportation Package [BTP], which includes the New Road for the BRT route and the Car Park, then they will have to satisfy the Department for Transport [DfT] that the scheme would achieve its objectives and be of ‘value for money.’

In discussions with the DfT they have advised us that, not only are they allowing amendments to the scope of schemes where that would improve affordability and value for money, they are positively encouraging it.

The next steps in the process are that the DfT will have discussions with local authority promoters of various schemes, prior to them submitting a Best and Final Funding Bid on 9 September and, they aim to make decisions by the end of 2011 on which schemes will be funded. In submitting their Best and final Funding Bids authorities will need to specify the precise scope and cost of the scheme amongst other things and. will not be bound by what they have already submitted in their Expression of Interest, which is very much an opening statement for discussion.

It is understood that B&NES Council will likely submit a fresh Expression of Interest to the DfT before the deadline for receipt of same of 9th September 2011.

The DfT welcome comments from the public and interested parties on the Expressions of Interest received and will consider these as part of their consideration of the schemes in question.
Enquiries and submissions from the public may be sent to:

Mr Bob Collins

Department for Transport

3/29 Great Minster House

76 Marsham Street

London

SW1P 4DR



E mail address: Bob.Collins@dft.gsi.gov.uk

Car Park

Previous correspondence with Don Foster established that he did not think the present proposed site for the Newbridge Car Park on the Meadows, was an appropriate location.

We have advised B&NES and the DfT that if a new Car Park is required in Newbridge, it should be located on its original proposed site south of the river on Duchy of Cornwall land.

This site has very many advantages over the present proposal on the Village Green, including a less cost of construction.

In order to protect the Newbridge Meadows from future development, so that the present and future generations of inhabitants may continue to enjoy the facilities they offer, as has been the case for many past generations, readers will be aware that a member of our team submitted an application last year for the Village Green on Newbridge Meadows to be Registered as such.

B&NES have now arranged for an Inquiry to be held into this application, details of which are set out below.

Non – Statutory Public Inquiry to Consider an Application to Register Land as a Town or Village Green under Section 15(2) of The Commons Act 2006

The Land is known as the Village Green Newbridge Meadows - Newbridge – Bath

Details of the Inquiry

The Inquiry will take place in the Council Chamber, The Guildhall, High Street, Bath, BA1 5AW on the following days and at the times stated in April 2011.

It will be conducted by the Inspector appointed by B&NES, Mr Leslie Blohm Q.C

Monday 11th April 10.30am to 1.00pm

Monday 11th April 2.00pm to 4.30pm

Monday 11th April 6.00pm until the session closes

Tuesday 12th April 10.30am to 1.00pm

Tuesday 12th April 2.00pm to 4.30pm

Wednesday 13th April 10.30am to 1.00pm

Wednesday 13th April 2.00pm to 4.30pm

Thursday 14th April 10.30am to 1.00pm

Thursday 14th April 2.00pm to 4.30pm

It is possible that the Inquiry could be concluded before Thursday 14th April and it could be extended, depending upon the Inspector’s directions.

An inspection of the Village Green will take place at the conclusion of the Inquiry.
Proofs of Evidence of use of the Village Green have been obtained and it is anticipated that the authors will read aloud their statements during the Inquiry.
Any member of the public may attend the Inquiry and if allowed

by the Inspector, they may address those present.
Newbridge Matters hope that members of the public will attend the Inquiry to show support for the actions we have and are taking in order to protect the interests of residents.
In due course, the Inspector will make his decision as to whether the Village Green should be Registered or not, known to B&NES and, it will then be up to the appropriate committee of the Council to accept or refuse that recommendation.
If the Village Green becomes ‘Registered’ it is unlikely that any future development could take place on the site.
From the length of this bulletin, readers will be aware that we have been working extremely hard in order to try and ensure that Newbridge becomes an even better place to live, work and visit.

Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year.

We wish readers a Very Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year and thank you for your interest and support throughout the year.

We assure you that we are taking all possible steps to ensure that B&NES Council do not implement their present proposals for the Bath Rapid Transit [BRT] scheme including the Park and Ride Car Park in its present proposed position.

We will of course keep you advised as matters proceed.

Bath and North East Somerset Full Council Meeting Tuesday Nov 16th.

 

At the above Council Meeting where besides other matters the Bath Transportation Package was discussed, a representative of ‘Newbridge Matters’ delivered a written and verbal statement which included the following.

With regard to the Bath Transport Package and in particular, if you wish to continue with your proposals for extending the existing Park and Ride Car Park at Newbridge and receive Grant Money, we understand that you will need to reduce the estimated cost of works in order for the Department for Transport to give further consideration to your Transport Package. A document has been prepared dated 15th September 2010 which I hope you have before you, showing Comparisons of Sites for a Car Park north and south of the River Avon.


From this document you will see that if you revert to your original site for the Car Park south of the river on Duchy of Cornwall land, not only will it provide for a much larger Car Park than that on the northern side of the river but, the cost per parking space should be much less.


This difference in costs is due to the very expensive decontamination works required to be carried out on the northern site, as part of the planning conditions when you received Planning Consent.


This site was for many years used as a commercial and domestic refuse tip.


Very expensive construction and maintenance costs would be involved on the northern site involving the provision of special water filtration material by way of permeable and impermeable membranes in the base construction, in order to prevent ground water from being drained from the site and affecting the adjacent Nature Conservation area.


At the time of the submission by your consultants for Planning Permission, they advised you that the Car Park would need to be excavated from time to time in order to replace the various membranes, giving rise to loss of parts of the Car Park as work proceeded.


Also, your consultants advised you that the Car Park would flood at certain times and that to try and minimise this effect they proposed that large underground water storage tanks be constructed.


None of these restraints would apply to your original site south of the river, it being on virgin land with drainage direct to the river.


The Land Agent for the Duchy of Cornwall in Newton St Loe confirmed on 4th November 2010 that he would be quite prepared to re-open negotiations with the Council for the sale of the necessary land in order for the Car Park to be constructed as originally intended on the southern side of the river.


Your original proposals for that Car Park included for part of it to be on two decks but, even if this was not carried out, the area is of sufficient size [8.33 acres] for it to be capable of providing parking for many more cars than the proposed extension of the existing Car Park, an area of only approximately 4 acres.


We respectfully request that you seriously consider reverting to your original site south of the river, which we feel confident would show a saving of costs at this critical financial time and provide for future transport needs.


To further show our resolve to help you, we have made available to your Chief Executive Officer a plan of the existing Newbridge Car Park showing that if the parking spaces were re-marked to the standard required size, then an additional 103 spaces could be provided giving a 20% increase on that now provided.


Madam Chairman, Councillor Sarah Bevan advised that this statement would be taken into consideration when the Council considered the Transportation Package further.

Conservative Campaign Pamphlet with the name 'Newbridge Matters'

We have recently received an A3 size double sided full colour pamphlet with the name ‘Newbridge Matters’ prominently displayed at the top of the first page, promoting the Conservative party.


Readers of this web site may also have received this document and other similar documents from the Conservative party.

We wish to advise you that this ‘Newbridge Matters’ web site has no connection whatsoever with any political party.

We have requested the publisher of the Conservative Campaign Pamphlet to refrain from using the title of our web site but, our request has been refused.

Be assured that the ‘Newbridge Matters’ web site will continue to remain non-political and continue for the benefit of Newbridge residents and the many supporters we have gathered since its inception.

Application for the Registration of Newbridge Meadows as a Village Green - Latest

We have received a letter from B&NES Council, advising us that they have now considered our application and, as there remains areas of dispute between us and the objector [B&NES Council,] it has been decided that a Non-Statutory Public Inquiry should be held into our application.

The Registration Authority [B&NES Council] will instruct an independent barrister who will preside over the Inquiry and we will be advised of further details in due course.

It may well be some months before the Inquiry is held and we will now need to prepare our case in detail.

Thank you to all those who have supported this Village Green application and we will of course keep you advised as matters proceed.

Application for the Registration of Newbridge Meadows as a Village Green - update.

As reported earlier, only one objection was submitted to the registration of this application, that being from Bath and North East Somerset [B&NES] Council.


A formal notice dated 16th July 2010 setting out the reasons for the objection has been received from B&NES.

In response to this notice, a robust and detailed challenge has been submitted and it is understood that it will be considered by the Council’s legal department at a meeting to be held on 16th September 2010, with a view to deciding what further action should be taken.

We understand that if as a result of our challenge the application is considered to be valid, a Non Statutory Public Inquiry will be held at some time in the future, presided over by a duly appointed Inspector, who will at the end of the inquiry report his findings directly to B&NES Council.

It is likely that the Inspector’s report will be considered by an appropriate committee of the Council and a decision then made as to whether the Newbridge Meadows should be granted Village Green status.

As readers will no doubt be aware from previous postings on this website, B&NES have already granted themselves Planning Permission for a Park and Ride Car Park to be constructed on part of the area of land being considered for registration as a Village Green and, it was thought that this action could influence any decision made concerning Village Green status.

It has now been established that the Planning Permission already granted for the Park and Ride Car Park will not in any way whatsoever have any effect on the making of any decision concerning Village Green status. The Officers of the Council, the Non Statutory Public Inquiry Inspector and the appropriate committee of the Council which will make the final decision, will follow the letter of the law in dealing with the application, purely on the merits of the application.

Unless the Council withdraws its objection, it is likely that the Public Inquiry will proceed after a period of time, to allow us to prepare our further detailed submissions to the Inspector prior to the actual inquiry.

The area under consideration is scheduled as a ‘Nature Conservation Area’ and an ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ with good reason.

The attention of the Council and our Member of Parliament Mr Don Foster has been drawn to the following.

It is well known that the world is in a state of ‘Ecological Meltdown’ with plants and animals missing two international targets for the continuation of the species.

Over 1,000 species are under ‘Special Protection’ but their decimation continues.

The habitat for many of these species is ‘Lowland Meadows’ such as the Newbridge Meadows, and since World War II, 97% of these Meadows have been destroyed, causing the cessation of very many species.

One in Five Plants in the United Kingdom form the basis of human life and these plants are fertilised by the action of bees and other insects.

Over a quarter of Bumble Bees are in danger of extinction due to the loss of habitat, with half the Honey Bee population having been decimated since the 1980s due to the loss of habitat.

As you will no doubt already know, pollination of plants takes place by the action of Bees, Butterflies and other insects visiting the flowers of the plants to gather nectar and, pollen from the flowers is then transferred to them. They then visit other flowers and deposit the pollen onto them and, fertilisation takes place. Without this action, pollination would have to be carried out by hand, a completely unthinkable situation with estimates of costs provided by the University of Reading running at over £1.5bn per year. This would of course increase the cost of basic food such as bread and even in this relatively wealthy country of the U.K, very serious health and other issues would develop.

For these reasons and many others, we cannot just take Nature for granted. If the pollinators are destroyed it will eventually see the destruction of the human race.

These comments may seem to those unacquainted with the situation concerning Nature, to be ‘outlandish’ but we and many other knowledgeable people in the field of ecology do assure you that if areas of land such as the Newbridge Meadows are not preserved then humanity will suffer, maybe not in our lifetimes but for those future generations.

As you will no doubt know, the Government is paying farmers to preserve hedgerows and strips of land adjoining their fields, half a billion pounds having been spent already, in order to provide habitat for pollinators and other wildlife to continue to exist and, provide an essential part of human life.

B&NES Council now have an excellent opportunity of continuing the policy of the Government in retaining habitat areas for wildlife, by supporting the application for the Newbridge Meadows to be a Village Green and by so doing, preserve the existing habitat for wildlife and at the same time continue the use of the Meadows for the inhabitants which has existed for at least 76 years.

We have seen the demise of many species of plants, animals and insects and we cannot allow this to continue.

The clock is ticking faster every day; now is your opportunity to at least slow it down !
We have been advised by B&NES Council that although the Meadows is the site of a proposed Car Park, this will not have any effect whatsoever on the way the application is considered by them or by an Inspector appointed to oversee any subsequent Public Inquiry and, that any report submitted by the Inspector to the Council will again be considered purely upon the merits of retaining the ecology and the granting of the Village Green application.

We again wish to thank all those who have submitted support and evidence of use of the Meadows, some for well over 70 years to the present time.

We hope that Registration of the Meadows will in fact take place to enable this and future generations to use and enjoy such a beautiful and rare area scheduled as Green Belt Land, a Nature Conservation Area and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

We will of course keep you advised on how this matter proceeds.