Community representatives have defended their campaign to create a new walking and cycling route linking Perth to Scone after a funding agreement drew a slew of negative comments from online critics.
Last week the PA reported Perth and Kinross Council had agreed to pay up to £25,000 for a feasibility study to be conducted to assess the practicality of forming the active travel route including a new bridge over the River Tay at the North Inch.
Strathmore councillor Colin Stewart asked for the cash to come from the local authority’s revenue budget on behalf of members of Scone and District Community Council (SDCC) which has been working on the proposal for some time.
However the agreement has drawn criticism from PA readers who reckon PKC ought to be spending its money elsewhere as well as readers who remember the doomed Connect2 project from a decade ago which also involved building a new bridge over the Tay.
One person commented on our story, which attracted 118 comments online: “At a time when money is tight, cost of living going through the roof and a recession about to hit all we need is another costly bridge. Better things for PKC to spend money on.”
Another reader remarked: “I don’t know how much the study will cost but surely we can see it’s a wasted effort. Other services under the council’s remit are strained.
“Put this nonsense to bed and do a study on something that will actually add value to the electorate and spend accordingly.”
Another critic added: “Where is all the money coming from? PKC must have orchards at High Street. They say money grows on trees.”
And a fourth said: “Upgrade the bridges we already have before you waste more taxpayers cash on yet another white elephant.”
Addressing those comments at a virtual meeting of SDCC last week, councillor Stewart defended the £25k spend arguing it was just a fraction of the total amount of cash the local authority has at its disposal.
He added the £25k could also be considered a small amount when compared to the near £100,000 PKC recently spent attempting to defend its controversial decision to close Abernyte school.
“The council can either spend money on a study for something which will promote a healthy sustainable place to live [or] waste it on a legal challenge that was never going to succeed,” he said.
“Sometimes if you don’t read into the detail of a story, people’s priorities can get confused.”
SDCC vice chair Jill Belch, who has been heavily involved in the project up until this stage, stated her belief the bridge will be “wonderful” for the local community if it ends up being built.
“It’s good news because we’ve been working on it for a year and there’s so much enthusiasm for it,” she said. “This will really enhance active travel for people in Perth and I think it’s well worth the investment.”
However councillor Lewis Simpson urged the group not to get their hopes up too much as he reminded them about the ill-fated Connect2 project.
Councillor Simpson, who backed councillor Stewart’s move to acquire funding for feasibility study last week, said it was only when consultants got involved the last time that costs doubled and the project eventually “went down the pan”.
“I would caution against overexcitement because we have been here before with a previous project that was fully funded,” he said.
Mr Simpson added that one of the few times he had received “hate mail” from constituents was when he “led the charge” for the Connect2 bridge.
“There was a huge amount of opposition to it and that won’t have gone away because any active travel measure brings out the worst in the motorist,” he said at last week’s online meeting.
