Trams: the best option?

Metrolink: the best solution for Oldham?

Howard Sykes in the hot seat, day two
THE latest local figure in the Chronicle’s hot seat is Oldham Council leader Councillor Howard Sykes.

Yesterday he answered questions on the local economy, job losses, the Mayoral car, councillors’ allowances and other topics.

Today he answers questions on Metrolink and the loss of Oldham’s heavy rail line among other matters.



Q Many readers are upset about the removal of Mumps Bridge and the loss of the rail service. An Alt reader asks who decided to bring Metrolink to Oldham and do away with a 20-minute rail service to Manchester. She also says a new rail line could have been laid at a fraction of the cost and without the destruction of a heritage site.
A I’m glad there are questions on Metrolink because the start of this work has made many people realise that this is now firmly on-track and definitely coming to Oldham.

This administration didn’t make the decision to bring Metrolink here. It has been a long-standing aspiration shared by all parties — and the private sector — for almost 20 years.

I fought hard to retain the old line as well as have our town-centre track but this was one of the most heavily subsidised railway lines in the North-West and required major investment and upgrade to keep it going. There was no cash available — local or national — to do this, so we were without question going to lose it.

A Metrolink line down Union Street is the very best option we could get and I’m confident that the wide-ranging benefits which attracted such a positive consensus on bringing it here still exist.



Q A Clarksfield reader asks why the council says Metrolink is coming to the town centre: she says when it is raining or snowing and people want to shop at the market or Henshaw Street, people will not feel it is the town centre.
A You can only put Metrolink track down on certain gradients of land. We couldn’t for example, have it coming up St Mary’s Way, or West Street. We have always been constrained geographically in terms of where the tram could actually run.

Secondly, the arrival of Metrolink will expand and reshape our town centre dramatically around the Union Street area.

In addition to the new transport interchange at Mumps there will also be a new Oldham Central stop near Sainsbury’s.

From there you are just yards away from being undercover at the Town Square/Spindles shopping centre with access to the rest of the town centre and the markets.



Q A Chadderton reader asks why Mumps Bridge, a landmark, was removed without consultation with local people?
AThat’s not right, I’m afraid. Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE) put in a planning application for the interim arrangements and so the normal channels for people to raise objections was followed. The plan was also publicised in the press.

It was also always the long-term intention to have a ground-level solution at Mumps. Metrolink would be at street level so that it could interchange with buses and other transport options like the Park and Ride. There’s nothing new in that part of the plan at all.

The removal of Mumps Bridge enables us to achieve this and gives us the chance to remodel the layout of the whole area in a way that will also be a “win” for motorists as well as public transport users.

When this is done Oldham Way will connect directly to Huddersfield Road without the delays caused by the current roundabout — everyone will be better off.

We are working with GMPTE to develop the final proposals on this and these will be made public in the very near future.



Q A Grasscroft reader wants to know by what authority the town was removed from the national rail network, why a level crossing is better than a bridge and why the bridge was removed without planning permission.
A Well, the legal process including a public inquiry to remove Oldham from the National Rail network was completed almost a decade ago by GMPTE. And if you live in Grasscroft you can, of course, go less than a mile to Greenfield station to connect directly on to the national rail network.

The key point here though is that Metrolink will connect us far better to the regional and national network. Oldham’s connectivity to transport interchanges like Manchester Piccadilly and Victoria will never have been better — look at how much easier it will be to use public transport to get to Manchester Airport.

We don’t need the bridge because Metrolink needs to feed straight into the new Mumps interchange at ground level.

And lastly, planning permission is not required to demolish — so there’s no question anything illegal was ever done in removing the bridge.



Q A reader, referring to the mosque which was built too high, asks why the council doesn’t use its powers and stop being so namby-pamby adding: “This isn’t the first time we have been taken for a ride.”
A Planning rules and guidelines are set nationally. I would like the power to set more rules at a local level because I think local citizens know best what is good for their area.

The mosque decision was taken by the cross-party members of the planning committee. They were fully aware of what the national guidelines on height are and mindful that if they turned the application down it would probably have led to an appeal unnecessarily costing the taxpayer thousands of pounds, and that we would — in all probability — have lost.

I can imagine what the headlines might have been then — that the committee’s decision was futile, posturing and a waste of money.

Planning is a tough climate. You need an incredibly robust argument to go against the national rules at present, and that means there are often some very harsh and realistic decisions to be made.



Q The policy of charging full council tax on empty properties is questioned by a reader who adds: “Derelict mills and shops pay nothing yet receive a full fire and police service.”
A A business property that has just become empty gets an exemption from paying business rates for the first three months — and that is up to six months for industrial properties, such as warehouses and mills.

Domestic properties also get an initial six-month exemption from when they first become empty. That can be extended for up to 12 months if they are carrying out important renovation work, like structural alterations, that will bring the property back into use.

I hope the reader isn’t seriously suggesting we should leave a mill blazing in a residential area just because our records show they are exempt from paying council tax!

But the really crucial point here is that right now we have around 6,500 residents on the council’s housing register.

Empty houses are a blight on communities and can become targets for vandalism and other types of anti-social behaviour. They are also a waste of potential and much-needed housing. I want to see these renovated and re-let.

We need to do something to encourage people who own these vacant properties to get them back into use and help us to help people get on to the property ladder. We are striving to use every tool at our disposal to tackle this issue, and I make absolutely no apologies for that.

The full version of this feature can be seen in tonight’s Oldham Chronicle and online in the E-Chron - subscription required.