CAMPAIGNERS pressing for an A590 bypass at High and Low Newton have come up with a three-point plan to get the scheme firmly established in the government's road building programme.

The bypass has been identified as a priority scheme in the Regional Planning Guidance for the North West, which in March recommended it be built by 2007.

The High and Low Newton Residents' Committee and around 30 villagers met Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Collins on Saturday to investigate ways of getting the Secretary of State to release government funds to finance the project.

They decided to:

Convene a mini-summit of all local authorities and agencies that have an interest in the bypass being built to brief them on "the most powerful arguments" for persuading the Government to fund the bypass.

Lobby with Furness Enterprise to get transport minister John Spellar to visit the area after his planned trip on July 7 was cancelled.

Draw up a "simple" dossier of environmental improvements that could be achieved if the road was built, to be handed out to anyone in a position to influence the decision-making process.

The committee also decided to replace and refresh some of the placards calling for the bypass that are sited around the area.

Guy Richardson, chairman of the Residents' Committee, describe the meeting as being very productive: "It means that as a committee, we have now got a mandate from the villagers over what we should be doing next."

June 5, 2003 14:30