'More traffic cones than an ice cream shop' on some Walsall roads
A frustrated councillor says there are “more traffic cones than an ice cream shop” on some Walsall roads, which are not being collected.
Councillor Paul Bott said roadwork signs and traffic cones have been left on streets in his Darlaston South ward long after repairs to potholes and other defects have been completed.
He was speaking at Walsall Council’s economy and environment overview and scrutiny committee on Thursday where the authority’s street scene strategy was being discussed.
The strategy is making streets cleaner, greener, safer and stronger for people in the borough and follows a consultation held as part of the We Are Walsall 2040 project.
Feedback is still being collected and, once completed, the street scene strategy will go before cabinet next year.
But Councillor Bott questioned whether finances were available for the “radical” change needed to improve the streets.
He said: “I think we need some reality. You can’t deliver the services because you haven’t got the money.
“We’re promising people all this when there is no one to provide it. I’ve had some roadworks done three years ago and the cones and furniture, road signs are still in place after three years.
“There is something going wrong on these streets. You go on the Black Country Route and there’s more cones than an ice cream shop.
“They’re never shifted and it’s never maintained to a proper standard. That’s the gateway to Walsall and on to the motorway.
“It needs a radical look at our street scene – cones, weeds in the curb, private land where things are overgrowing onto footpaths – that’s the reality what people have to put up with.”
Dave Brown, Walsall Council’s director of place and environment, said: “When we bring this to cabinet with a set of proposals, they will be costed and will be part of that decision making on whether they are affordable or not and it will have to be built into the budget.
“Overall, it’s a relatively small part of the budget but we know from the consultation its very important to the residents.
“With road signs out on the street and not picked up from old works, if you send me the details we will get that looked at.”
Katie Moreton, head of highways, added: “The cones on the Black Country Route, I appreciate there are a lot of them and they are all linked to the M6 junction 10 works. We’ve got temporary traffic management going on.
“The Black Country Route, in general, is something we are looking at about introducing a scheduled maintenance scheme once the M6 works are out of the way because that is a restricting factor at the moment.”
