THE CHAIR of Thurrock Council’s Transport committee has expressed his shock at the “massive overspend” by the Tory-run Thurrock Council.
Councillor Martin Kerin said: ‘The news of this massive overspend is shocking, to say the least. After many months of pressing for a figure, it is now apparent why the Council prevaricated and delayed at every turn. For a project cost to have risen by £41m in little over a year is simply unacceptable.
‘Not only is the figure astronomical, but the project is not expected to be completed until summer 2021. This is a further blow to the people and businesses of Thurrock who use the road to go about their daily business.
‘The A13 Widening fiasco is but the latest example of a Council that seems incapable of managing major infrastructure projects. Hardworking Thurrock taxpayers are right to ask who is going to pay for a 50% increase in costs which the project has incurred in the space of little over a year.
‘As Chair of the Planning, Transport, Regeneration Overview & Scrutiny Committee, I will be calling for an inquiry into the A13 Widening Project. It must have a detailed breakdown of the costs, where the money to make up the shortfall will come from and a detailed timeline of where it all went wrong. Failings of this magnitude must never happen again.
‘The people of Thurrock deserve answers. The people of Thurrock deserve so much better than this.’
