A “frustrated and disappointed” man from Bradley Stoke is attempting to take South Gloucestershire Council to court following a summer of traffic mayhem caused by roadworks on Bradley Stoke Way, Baileys Court Road and Webbs Wood Road.
Scott Silbereis was one of many residents who was negatively impacted for weeks due to the roadworks over the summer and now he is suing the council and claiming they did not follow proper procedures.
After initially complaining to the council in August and having his complaints rebutted, Mr Silbereis has launched a private prosecution.
He said: “It’s very frustrating and disappointing. I have tried since the beginning of this project to say that I’m not opposed to the project, I’m opposed to it being implemented disproportionately. I’m opposed to the works causing chaos for local residents that are beyond the value of the project.
“To close some of the area’s roads, the Council used a legal power which is only valid for up to five days. I raised it with the Council and tried to get them to correct the position, but they’ve now refused to engage with me further unless I start Court proceedings. I have therefore started a private prosecution at the Magistrates’ Court, based on the criminal offence of having closed two roads without lawful authority after the fifth day.”
He added: “Separately, I am also likely to pursue Judicial Review in the High Court about other parts of the project. I think the Council took on more projects than they could manage this year, but Bradley Stoke seems to be getting the worst of their unreasonable decision-making. For example, they’ve only just started a formal consultation that is legally required before deciding whether to install new pedestrian crossings (which they’ve already installed). In that consultation, they’ve not correctly identified the locations in question, so how can residents respond meaningfully?
“They’ve now closed Bradley Stoke Way for six months and diverted pedestrians, including school children, through a muddy, unlit, flood-prone nature reserve with a history of violent crime, yet there is rarely anyone working on that section of the road – it could be done in a few weeks if it was reasonably resourced.
“I tried to engage with the Council constructively, to encourage some changes to reduce the impact on local residents. Unfortunately, they’ve now said they won’t continue to discuss it with me unless I involve the courts, which is very disappointing.”
South Glos Council was carrying out the roadworks as part of its Active Travel Scheme with the intention to make it easier for people to travel on foot, by bike and by bus. Consequently, it was deemed necessary to close several major roads at once for the works to go ahead.
These works coincided with an adjacent roadwork scheme on the A38 Gloucester Road Flyover and the A4174 Ring Road. Collectively, the two large roadworks projects caused lengthy delays for drivers, some of whom reported that a journey which previously took 20 minutes then took hours.
A spokesperson for South Glos Council said: “We have been in correspondence with a resident who has raised some questions about the processes we have followed in making the legal orders to close roads and put diversions in place. We accept that the closures continue to cause disruption and that the quantity of roadworks currently in place on various parts of the network can and do have a knock-on effect for drivers.
“However, the summer months do present the best opportunity to undertake major roadwork schemes. Traffic flows are generally lower and the weather allows the work to take place without being delayed by wet conditions.
“Road closures are required for the safety of the workforce and work can typically be done more quickly if stretches of road are closed completely, reducing the overall disruption.
“We have and will continue to follow the appropriate processes to make sure these schemes are delivered and to give people advance notice so they can plan their journeys.”