Underpass fiasco has a serious side
Villages editor
Photographer
Sports editor I am glad Judith Chappell found my photo, from the article on page 12 of the January 1 edition, to be ridiculous as that was exactly its intention.
Such a shame she didn’t appreciate the humour intended. I was very sorry, however, that Judith seemed unable to appreciate the serious side to the episode.
The underpass was built many years ago to provide a safe means of crossing a very busy junction.
Now, many years later, the traffic volume has grown to such an extent that it is necessary to radically redesign the traffic flow.
Unfortunately, Kent Highways has seen fit to remove the heavily-used underpass and force pedestrians to cross five lanes of traffic instead.
The underpass has been flooded many times due to the inability of its pumps to cope with flood water. In fact, up until just before Christmas it was under water for three months, with no attempt to pump it out.
Political editor
Business editor
I was not alone in considering this flooding to be unacceptable and was representing a number of disgruntled Streetlife members when I sought help from Helen Grant MP in supporting a complaint to KCC drainage division.
I hope other users of the underpass appreciate that it can now be used at least until its closure, a move that I
What’s On reporter
kentonline editor along with others consider is unwise.
I feel that the relatively small cost was a worthwhile investment, particularly when compared with the £1 million-plus cost for the towncentre granite paving that caused so many serious tripping accidents due to its bad design. Tony Monk Westerhill Road, Coxheath