NEWSFLASH: URGENT

The Council’s Executive Board meets on Wednesday 13th March, included on the agenda

To approve that a report should be presented to Full Council recommending the submission of the required Transport and Works Act Order (TWAO) and associated applications for NGT to the Secretary of State for Transport.

Here is a Link to the report asking for their approval for the scheme:

New Generation Transport information pack FINAL.doc

If this agenda item is approved by the Executive Board, the Full Council meeting in April, will be asked to agree to the expenditure of £19.2m to meet the Council’s share in the development costs for NGT.

These are costs associated with preparing plans and documents required for the submission of the required Transport and Works Act Order (TWAO) and associated applications for NGT to the Secretary of State for Transport. All required before the public enquiry stage and any final decision is made by the Government as to whether to release government(?) money for the scheme.

This expenditure should be viewed against the massive groundswell of public opinion which sees the NGT trolley bus scheme as being flawed and inappropriate, not to mention the council cutbacks being made last year, this year and expected for next year. Assuming common sense prevails and scheme is rejected after a public enquiry, then all this money will have been wasted.

NGT is not a political issue but one which affects people of all persuasions across the whole of Leeds, with implications for travel, community life and the future finances of the City.

The A660 Joint Council position, is to oppose NGT in the form of the trolley-bus.

This is the single biggest scheme, affecting neighbourhoods from Hunslet to Holt Park, that will be promulgated in our life-time. Its effects will be profound, whether you are for or against.

Further thoughts concerning NGT are in the attached document.

 It is vital that you make your views known – act NOW!

The email-addresses of Members of the Executive Board are as follows:

<andrew.carter@leeds.gov.uk>, <stewart.golton@leeds.gov.uk>, <keith.wakefield@leeds.gov.uk>, <judith.blake@leeds.gov.uk>, <mark.dobson@leeds.gov.uk>, <peter.gruen@leeds.gov.uk>,

<richard.lewis@leeds.gov.uk>, <lisa.mulherin@leeds.gov.uk>, <adam.ogilvie@leeds.gov.uk>, <lucinda.yeadon@leeds.gov.uk>

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