ON Saturday, the ECHO published another letter saying tunnel users should accept being used as a cash cow. It said they would benefit because of empty city centre parking spaces once the tram was running.
They did not say why it was fair to charge tunnel users, when drivers coming from Sefton etc would not pay. In any case, the trams scheme can be of little benefit to tunnel users as most of them are not going to Liverpool city centre.
Despite this lack of any benefit, tunnel users are being told to hand over £40m. Residents of Liverpool and Knowsley make up 43% of the population of Merseyside. They are the main ones that will get any benefit, yet between them have agreed to pay a maximum of £25m.
Dave Loudon, chairman, Mersey Tunnels Users Association
WHO took the decision to resurface Derby Road in Bootle now. The traffic chaos in the city centre and effect on city centre businesses has been well documented in the ECHO.
I have always thought "short-term pain, long-term gain", but now find my business affected by the ridiculous amount of roadworks.
I left my home in Blundellsands at 9am on Friday and arrived in Allerton at 10.50am, a car journey that should take no longer than 40 minutes. Most of that time I spent queuing on Derby Road and the Strand.
It is chaos and somebody should be held accountable. My shop should have been open at 10am and who knows what business was lost in the 50 minutes before I got there.
I am all for progress, but surely with communication between councils, roadworks could be staggered and delays kept to a minimum?
Cathy Whitby, L23
More greenery gone
IT looks like another victory for vested interest over public opinion in Bootle.
Despite petitions and personal protests against the proposed building of 30 dwellings on the green area beside Christ Church primary school off Hawthorne Road, our wonderful council has decided to grant permission to build houses on the small recreational area for kids and adults to kick a ball around or just to alleviate the claustrophobic effect of being piled on top of each other.
Long forgotten are the lessons of the 60s and 70s with the social implications of stacking people into small areas. There is also a total disregard of the traffic problems caused by placing these 30 dwellings in a cul-desac next to a primary school.
Why further cram people into an already full residential area by stealing one of the few pieces of green grass?
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