AS one of Cllr Sanderson s Hinchingbrooke constituents (Letters, November 12), I would like to remind you that his memory of the scheme is far clearer than your version. The overwhelming public support that you mention fails to indicate just how few peo

AS one of Cllr Sanderson's Hinchingbrooke constituents (Letters, November 12), I would like to remind you that his memory of the scheme is far clearer than your version.

The "overwhelming public support" that you mention fails to indicate just how few people responded to the consultation. Could this have been because the council decision to go ahead was announced about one week before the deadline for submissions for the consultation?

Many that Cllr Sanderson talked to were appalled at this failure of the democratic process and decided that they should not waste their time making a formal response to such a flawed process. I also remember that Huntingdon Town Council voted against the proposal without success. Clearly these councillors were listening to their constituents.

If you were to visit Hinchingbrooke Park Road/Brampton Road during the 5pm to 6pm rush hour, you would see what a waste of money the proposed solution would have been. The £1million would have managed to gain the buses in the bus lane about seven cars' lengths in Brampton Road before they got jammed up again before the traffic lights at the railway station entrance.

They would have no gain coming down Hinchingbrooke Park Road, as it is only one lane in each direction. At that time of night, the problem is that the hospital and the forensic laboratory staffs all seem to leave at the same time. In these days of flexible working it cannot be beyond the wit of man to stagger leaving times and so reduce the flow.

No-one on the Hinchingbrooke estates consciously drives down that road at that time because of the gridlock. Many however easily drive up in the opposite direction.

This proposal is also from a council which appears to want to add to the problems at the Brampton Road junction by moving the regional college there. This would extend the jams to become from 4pm instead.

Geography and a review of the layout of the proposed bus lane would have told you that there would be no benefit in the morning of buses going to Hinchingbrooke School because the bus lane would have worked only in the Huntingdon direction, not coming from town. Also, the morning rush happens over a far longer period and so is pretty insignificant in traffic terms.

The hasty decision taken may have had something to do with "spending" the windfall from the developer of stage two of Hinchingbrooke Park before it was lost. I just wonder where it has gone now!

Huntingdonshire District and Cambridgeshire County Councils should have bitten the bullet a lot earlier and put in another road to take some of the flow off Hinchingbrooke Road - possibly direct to the A14. However, this would probably cost more than the £1million that this failed scheme had available.

GORDON LOGAN

Parkway

Huntingdon