A PETITION signed by more than 1,700 people calling for Warrington’s swing bridges to be cleaned and re-painted has been presented to Manchester Ship Canal owners Peel Holdings.
The petition, which has been running since the end of last year, was organised by Liberal Democrats in Warrington, although it has won support from other political parties.
Signatures have been gathered at street stalls, through leaflets and online.
Lib Dem councillor Peter Walker said: “The petition contains over 1700 names. We could have gathered many thousands more because just about everyone we asked has signed up.
“This reflects the strength of public feeling about this issue. People are very angry about the poor appearance and corrosion of these bridges and think Peel should do something about them. Their current state lets the area down badly. Similar bridges like the one over the Weaver Navigation are immaculate by comparison demonstrating that such maintenance is feasible.
“We have been campaigning for a long time to make Peel Holdings and the Manchester Ship Canal Company show more respect for the community in which they operate by painting the bridges and ensuring that they swing quickly and reliability to minimise traffic disruption in the town.”
Cllr Graham Welborn added: “We have noted that Peel’s Corporate Social Responsibility policy states that, ‘It’s not just about improving our service….it’s also about improving our environment. At Peel Ports we know that we have a duty of care not only to our customers and shareholders, but also to the population as a whole.
“Our policy of Corporate Social Responsibility is right at the heart of everything we do.’ We think Peel should practice what it preaches.
“We are pleased that other political parties have joined our campaign but we are disappointed that so far Peel seems to be unwilling to take any notice of anyone. We intend to keep up the pressure and hope that one day Peel will take notice of what the public is saying.
“Peel has massive business interests in and around Warrington and we want them to be successful, but we also want them to show their support for local people who take pride in their town.”
Cllr Walker and Cllr Welborn at the Stockton Heath swing bridge
Swing bridge petition handed to canal owners
33 Comments
3 Comments
Crikey with elections just a week away, I am surprised that some candidates aren’t being photographed with a tin of paint and a brush in hand. I recall a few years ago, one candidate being photographed painting a mile marker not a million miles from the bridge in this photograph. As an aside, good luck to all candidates, and whilst you will not all be elected at least you are upholding our great democratic traditions and putting your name on a ballot paper and giving the electorate a choice.
I’m sat here laughing now and yes I also remember the supposed painting of the milestone marker and the person (who shall remain nameless) with brush in her hand appearing to paint it and having their photo taken for press/election material. It caused quite a stir in the village when it came out as people had seen a gent painting it all the day before she was seen being photographed there. So funny 😀
Oh another note, with Elections only a week away (thanks for the reminder as I’d actually forgotten about it) I wonder why I’ve hardly had any election leaflets (apart from 2 Focus newsletters from Libs Dems, first one was immediately after the boundary change announcement) and I’ve not had one single door knock at all from any party even though I’ve seen some of the hopefuls walk past my house and knock on my neighbours doors. Oh dear maybe I’ve been black marked…sort of glad really though 😀
Anyway back to the story, I doubt Peels will take any notice at all of the petition as they have ignored everyone and everything else so far but it’s worth a try I suppose.