By Carmelo Garcia – Local Democracy Reporter
There are concerns the lack of drainage along part of a £40m cycle route is creating a flooding risk along a stretch of the newly installed route through Gloucester city centre.
Gloucestershire County Council is in the process of linking Bishop’s Cleeve to Stroud via Cheltenham and Gloucester with a 26-mile multi-million cycle spine.
But there are concerns in the county town that rainwater accumulates where the new cycle path meets the road at the new crossing on Kimbrose Way.
Councillor Rebecca Trimnell (LD, Hempsted and Westgate), who represents that part of the city at Shire Hall, said she was astonished decent drainage was not planned
She said: “I was concerned to see a significant pool of water at the new pedestrian crossing at Kimbrose Way on Wednesday and that was after light drizzle.
“It seems that drainage is an issue which needs to be addressed in this location and perhaps in other areas where work has been done on this cycleway.
“I am astonished that decent drainage was not thought about prior to this work.
“I had presumed the pedestrian crossing was to reopen at the end of October, and it seems this could be further delayed if work is now needed on a drainage solution.
“Pedestrians have had to put up with a lot at this crossing and it’s about time work was completed”.
Highways cabinet member Joe Harris (LD, Cirencester Park) said the council was already aware of the drainage issue and contractors are working to identify the cause and rectify it.
“It’s always best when councillors raise local issues with us directly so we can get them sorted quickly rather than going to the press first,” he said.
“In this case, we were already aware of a drainage issue at Kimbrose Way and our contractor is working to identify the cause and put it right.
“Whenever we carry out highways improvements, we follow rigorous quality assurance procedures to identify any snagging issues before completion.
“We’re making great progress in delivering high-quality infrastructure that supports convenient and healthy active travel options, including walking, wheeling and cycling, across the county.”