The Chesham Town Liberal Democrat Group has today issued a scathing response to the officer recommendation that the Buckinghamshire Council Leader make the Experimental Traffic Regulation Order (ETRO) permanent. The group has labelled the move a “betrayal of local democracy” that prioritises administrative convenience over the clear will of the town.
The recommendation comes despite a massive surge in public opposition with far more responses than usual to a consultation. A detailed breakdown of the consultation responses confirms that 1,325 comments were received in the second round—with 96% of people AGAINST. Chesham Lib Dems argue that the Council is attempting to "buy off" opposition by removing permit charges while pushing ahead with unpopular and confusing physical changes to the town centre.
The Chesham Lib Dem Group has identified major failures in the current proposal:
A spokesperson for the Chesham Town Liberal Democrat Group said:
“Buckinghamshire Council is trying to tell us that removing a permit fee makes this scheme acceptable. It does not. This is a classic 'divide and rule' tactic designed to silence our high street businesses & market traders while they force through traffic changes that the people of Chesham clearly do not want.
We have seen the breakdown of the 1,325 responses, and the message from our community is deafening: this experiment has failed. We want a town centre that is a destination, not just a managed traffic zone. The Lib Dem Group is demanding that the Council Leader rejects this recommendation and selects Option 3 to reverse the changes and work with Chesham Town Council on a plan that puts Chesham residents first.”
The Chesham Lib Dems are calling on the Conservative Leader to respect the consultation response and reject the ETRO.
At Buckinghamshire Council, the Conservative leadership is trying to sneak through permanent changes that will change the face of Chesham forever. We are standing up to stop them—but we need your help.