Car park could be solution (From Stroud News and Journal)

Car park could be solution

THE car park off Stroud's London Road could be used as the temporary bus station to cover the gap between the closure of the Merrywalks site and provision of a permanent alternative.

If Stroud Town Council gets its way part of the car park will be turned over to the buses until the long-await integrated transport link materialises.

At a meeting of its planning committee on Monday evening the council launched a two-pronged plan to secure proper public transport in the town.

There was almost universal agreement that the district council's suggested site below the Rowcroft Medical Centre was inadequate.

"We find it incredible what Stroud District Council is proposing," said Cllr Carole Kambites, committee chairman.

"We need to provide alternative arrangements in the short-term and the long-term."

Councillors all agreed they should apply what pressure they could to speed up the process of providing the transport link to keep the time between the closure of the Merrywalks station and finding a new site down to a minimum.

But they still believed there would be problems in the meantime.

"We're going to be in the old situation of having buses in the streets again," said Cllr and town mayor John Marjoram.

Cllr Kambites' suggestion that the London Road car park be used for the buses received general support though Cllr Andy Read warned that it was not without its own set of problems.

* For full story see this week's News & Journal.