New delay over replacement bus shelters
Monday, 26th April 2010.
The saga of Haverhill bus station is set to continue for a while yet after it was revealed last week that the company supposed to be making new shelters has gone into liquidation.
The shelters installed last year at the re-jigged bus station turned out to be impractical and very unpopular with travellers.
After initially shrugging off the complaints by saying the shelters were of the same design as in other parts of the county where there were no complaints, Suffolk County Council eventually yielded to local pressure to replace them.
It was expected the new shelters might be in place by around now, but last week's meeting of St Edmundsbury Borough Council's Haverhill Area Working Party heard there had been a snag.
In a report to the working party, Simon Barnett, the county council's passenger transport senior infrastructure officer said: "Unfortunately there is a delay in our ability to order the new shelters. The supplier we have been using for the last five years, Garrick Outdoor Ltd, has gone into liquidation.
"Their parent company, Garrick Engineering Ltd, is still solvent and is willing to undertake the work on three outstanding orders for shelters in rural locations."
He said they were now looking to transfer these orders so that Garrick Engineering could be employed on them.
Until thay had seen their quality of workmanship on the three rural shelters they were not prepared to commit to placing more work, such as the Haverhill shelters, with them.
He also said they were talking to other manufacturers and might be in a position
to confirm who the supplier would be 'in the next month or so.’
Cllr Anne Gower, the borough's portfolio holder for Haverhill, urged that pressure should be put on the county council to get on with it.
"I've asked that we should ensure there is no undue delay on this," she said after the meeting.
"We want it before next winter and we don't want to be waiting around while they see what these rural shelters turn out like.
"We must put pressure on to make sure it happens sooner rather than later."
The shelters installed last year at the re-jigged bus station turned out to be impractical and very unpopular with travellers.
After initially shrugging off the complaints by saying the shelters were of the same design as in other parts of the county where there were no complaints, Suffolk County Council eventually yielded to local pressure to replace them.
It was expected the new shelters might be in place by around now, but last week's meeting of St Edmundsbury Borough Council's Haverhill Area Working Party heard there had been a snag.
In a report to the working party, Simon Barnett, the county council's passenger transport senior infrastructure officer said: "Unfortunately there is a delay in our ability to order the new shelters. The supplier we have been using for the last five years, Garrick Outdoor Ltd, has gone into liquidation.
"Their parent company, Garrick Engineering Ltd, is still solvent and is willing to undertake the work on three outstanding orders for shelters in rural locations."
He said they were now looking to transfer these orders so that Garrick Engineering could be employed on them.
Until thay had seen their quality of workmanship on the three rural shelters they were not prepared to commit to placing more work, such as the Haverhill shelters, with them.
He also said they were talking to other manufacturers and might be in a position
to confirm who the supplier would be 'in the next month or so.’
Cllr Anne Gower, the borough's portfolio holder for Haverhill, urged that pressure should be put on the county council to get on with it.
"I've asked that we should ensure there is no undue delay on this," she said after the meeting.
"We want it before next winter and we don't want to be waiting around while they see what these rural shelters turn out like.
"We must put pressure on to make sure it happens sooner rather than later."
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