THE Òappalling stateÓ of AltonÕs roads came in for strong criticism last week with a warning that Hampshire County Council could be setting itself up for serious claims of neglect if repairs were not forthcoming.

In a damning indictment, Peter Whitmarsh described parts of the High Street as being a ÒdangerÓ to road users which, in the case of an accident, could lead to accusations of negligence.

Colleague Paddy Mendham agreed: ÒVirtually every road in Alton needs repairs,Ó he said.

The comments followed a written report to Alton Town Council from county councillor, Tony Ludlow who, whileunable to attend last ThursdayÕs meeting, was keen to pass on the results of his work on the townÕs behalf.

He said that while a number of pothole repairs had been undertaken the county council was currently experimenting with four different techniques for infilling, some of which were sensitive to moisture and other variables.

ÒThe clear winner seems to be a jet patch machine which shoots hot tar into the hole and this sticks, even in wet weather,Ó said Dr Ludlow but, he warned, the machine was extremely expensive and the one on the road at present was only available to spend one week in four in the Alton area.

Mr Whitmarsh suggested that, if Òthe bestÓ was too expensive, the council should be looking at using a technique which was affordable and which could be implemented without further delay.

He drew attention also to the half finished state of the townÕs cycle lanes which, he felt, were Òuseless unless complete.Ó The county council, he said, was thought to be Òsitting on a not inconsiderable amount of moneyÓ to finish off the work which should either be used or Ògiven backÓ to central government and the scheme abandoned.

Also in the line of fire was the delay in launching the Alton Transport Study which, according to Dr Ludlow, had in the past suffered from lack of resources. Things were now starting to move since the project had been allocated a member of staff who would be responsible for driving things forward.

Her job would be to first summarise the consultantÕs recommendations, together with more recent issues, and then to prepare a written paper with a map showing the problems that have been identified.

This document would be sent to Alton Town Council and would become the subject of a meeting with East Hampshire District Council officers within the next three or four weeks.

The outcome of the meeting would be used to prepare a consultation document for wider discussion.

ÒThe scope of this study is seen as identifying the need for improvements at roundabouts, crossings and traffic management and then proposing solutions to the problems identified,Ó reported Dr Ludlow.

ÒThe study will certainly cover danger points such as the New Odiham Road where incoming vehicles do not respond to the 30 mph speed limit and there have been a number of accidents.Ó

According to Dr Ludlow, proposals such as residentsÕ parking would not be part of the study but would be progressed in parallel. He urged town councillors to enlist the help of EHDC whose officers took a major part in the arrangements for residentsÕ parking in Petersfield and, he felt, ought to be involved in any proposals for Alton.

Dr Ludlow was keen to hear the town councilÕs views on any areas which might benefit from residentsÕ parking. These could then be used to start a survey of cars parked in the areas concerned in order to assess the impact of possible future parking restrictions and to use this information in the consultation process.

Town council leader Dave Crocker was unimpressed by the scope of the proposed study, feeling that it would not look at producing an integrated transport system for Alton - for which it had been pressing for the past seven years.

ÒThe county council is looking at getting things moving from south to west in Alton whereas we are interested in getting things moving from north to east,Ó pointed out Mr Crocker.

Town mayor David Willoughby agreed: ÒWhat we want are firm proposals to look at in order to plan the integrated future development of the town.Ó

Paddy Mendham was keen to press the county council for an early meeting to discuss the Alton Transport Study in order to clarify its objective. ÒIt is vital that Alton Town Council has a say in the transport strategy for this area,Ó he said.