Close guided busway if expense continues, says UKIP councillor
Orla Moore
BBC Local Live
Posted at 18:28 30 Nov
A UKIP councillor says Cambridgeshire's guided busway should be shut down if taxpayers continue to foot the bill for its upkeep.
The call comes as contractor BAM Nuttall has been told it may have to stump up a 43€m repair bill. An independent report found problems with foundations and concrete sections on the route between Cambridge and St Ives.
Paul Bullen, UKIP group leader (pictured), asked a county council meeting: "Why did we build a guided busway that was untried, untested and untrusted on the Fens?"
BBC
"We have to draw a line in the sand," he told BBC Look East. "We cannot keep spending taxpayers' money.
"If we get to a point that we've spent far too much that we can't throw any more money at it then yes, we could well have to close the busway."
BBC
Conservative councillor Ian Bates, who represents the Hemingfords and Fenstanton, defended the busway's success, saying 17m people have used it since it started in 2011, adding it will form a vital connection through the new Northstowe development.
Cambridgeshire County Council says it hasn't ruled out taking legal action against BAM Nuttall if a settlement can't be reached.
Adrian Savory, operations director at BAM Nuttall, said the company is "totally committed to ensuring that the busway performs as it should".
"If there is anything wrong with the busway for which BAM Nuttall is responsible, BAM Nuttall will put it right," he said.