Mile Marker - Formby

WE have been asked by a few residents in Formby about reports that Sefton Council is looking at a Road Widening Scheme on Liverpool Road (B5424) that connects Formby to the Southern Formby Roundabout, on the Formby Bypass (A565.): this road is a major road and the carriageway is often extremely congested, so our readers have taken note as this is not the 1st time this area has been targeted in recent years. The road known locally often backs up to what locals call the Lighthouse Roundabout, has a hidden and very important item located on it. This road through the top end of Little Altcar was part of the original Southport Road and that historic connection can be found via overlooked and mostly forgotten mile marker.

"Sadly this mile marker is now badly neglected, but unique mileposts and markers should be preserved. Mile markers are the property of the authority responsible for the upkeep of the road, but sadly these are often accidently lost, often when roads get rebuilt or stolen. We are worried that we might lose this peace of Formby history for ever. Can you check to see what is going on as the website for planning was last updated back in June 2019. If a road widening scheme takes place, we would, like to know if this is protected as it is 1 of the few remaining historically significance items within Formby." said Bob who is a local Formby resident.

We have sent Sefton an email to see if they can let us know any information about it as well as Formby Parish Council. We have also taken a look at the website and spotted that the last application about road widening was made in connection to an application for a development that was last mentioned, as far as we can find, on 26 September 2018.  Please email us your views and thoughts about this to our news room via:- News24@SouthportReporter.Com.

Merseyrail Strikes Update

ON 16 October 2019 the RMT Union's National Executive Committee gave its endorsement to the latest proposal which is a key step to resolving this long running industrial dispute. As part of this decision the RMT have suspended the impending 9 days of strikes on consecutive Saturdays, due to commence on the 2 November 2019, to allow its local representatives to meet with the Merseyrail Management Team to finalize the proposal so that it can be presented to Guard members to seek their endorsement of the agreement.

Commenting on today's announcement, Andy Heath, Merseyrail Managing Director, said:- "At no time in our many days of negotiations with the RMT did we ever lose sight of the fact that the new Merseyrail trains will be one of the best metro railway trains in the national rail network. These new trains deliver everything that our customers have asked for through the design of a modern interior, safety features that have responded to feedback from a variety of user panels and industry bodies across the UK and of course the sliding step and platform level boarding maximizing the accessibility for all our customers. I am pleased that after consideration the RMT's National Executive Committee has endorsed the latest proposal in principle and at the same time have given our customers, shoppers, and traders the benefit of the lead up to Christmas being strike free by suspending the planned 9 days of strikes. We will now progress with the next phase of discussions to finalize an agreement so that the RMT can consult with its Guard members before proceeding towards implementation."

Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, added:- "This announcement is welcome news and I'd like to express my sincere thanks to my team, who have worked so hard for so long in negotiations to achieve this breakthrough. Since I inherited this dispute, I have been focused on reaching the best outcome for hardworking Merseyrail staff and the people of the Liverpool City Region. That is why I have been committed to bringing all parties to the negotiating table and why I intervened to scrap proposals for driver only operation and guarantee a Guard, with a safety critical role, onboard every new train. These latest proposals, that have come from RMT local negotiators and been approved for the first time by the RMT National Executive Committee, reflect that commitment by providing a role in dispatch and legally binding job security beyond the end of the current franchise. We have been close to a deal before, but I am hopeful that today's breakthrough means that we can now look forward to the arrival from 2020 of our new, state of the art trains, which will be publicly owned by local people and are being built to meet their needs and the needs of our City Region."