Opinion torn on work to fill in Telford underpasses
Uninviting, with walls scrawled with graffiti, three underpasses in Telford have become hotbeds for petty crime – but their time is about to be up.
Telford & Wrekin Council says there were more than 100 reported crimes in the underpasses in Brookside during 2016 alone.
The work, which starts on Monday, is expected to take the contractor Fitzgerald’s about 18 weeks to complete.
It was today welcomed by pensioner Chris Briscoe, who lives in Beaconsfield, Brookside.
The 74-year-old said: "I agree with it. They should fill them in. There's problems with vandalism, graffiti and it's ripe around here for drugs.
"People don't use them. I've never seen anyone walking under them. I don't use them. They are too dangerous. There's plenty of crossings here."
Sharon Beeston, 52, who lives by one of the underpasses just off Brookside Avenue, said: "I've lived here 30 years and in the first 12 months I lived here I had the police knock on the door saying a woman had been attacked in the underpass.
"That's the first and only incident I'm aware of.
"I used to use the underpass when I had friends living in Brookside. I never used it on my own because you hear the horror stories. I don't need to use them now. When they created these estates they put these in because they thought they needed them but pedestrian crossings are a much safer option."
Denise Hallam, 31, of Brookside, said she uses one of the underpasses to take her children to school in the morning.
She added: "Me and my kids come through every morning to go to school. It's always been fine. I used to live in Sutton Hill and they filled them in there as well. They have just done all the railings a few months ago. It's just a waste of money."
The work is being carried out as part of Telford & Wrekin Council’s Pride in Our Community investment programme. Telford & Wrekin Council's engineering services group manager Steve Hollins said temporary traffic lights will be used during some of the work but footpaths will be kept open and people will be able to cross Brookside Avenue easily.
Some 1,000 cubic metres of foam concrete and 1,200 cubic metres of filler material will be used to complete the job, burying the subways forever. Time-delay cameras will also be used during the process and the footage will be uploaded to the council's website so people can see how the work progresses.
Mr Hollins said: "We have three structures on Brookside Avenue which are rarely used. It's an attraction for unsociable behaviour. We have had reports on the three underpasses alone of 100 incidents back in 2016."
About £45 million is being invested by the council over the next three years to make improvements in neighbourhoods across the borough, including improvements to roads, footpaths, street lights and green spaces.
