I think you should continue this discussion somewhere else too.
Local government is subject to checks and balances and officers are answerable to elected members.
Major highways engineering works are subject to consultation.
I suggest you check your council's constitution and their overview and scrutiny committee - details should be available on their website. Your local councillor is at liberty to request an officer's report.
I have found with local government that asking questions to elicit facts gets a better response than uninformed criticism.
On 18 Oct 2012, at 18:34, Ian Perry wrote:
> Thank you Nick, but this is about Society and about Cycling.
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> It's also interesting that the officers in a council can by-pass elected representatives when they obtain money from the civil service (Welsh Government in this case). Is there any accountability for the money highway engineers spend or the results in terms of safety or delays?
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> Other than with Sustrans, there appears to have been no input in the case I've raised by anyone other than the highways engineers, which raises questions about the role of democracy. We can elect people, but they have no say in key decisions! Is there any point in lobbying politicians when highway engineers can by-pass them and do not need to justify their decisions or actions? Communities and citizens seem to have no chance of influencing the decisions of unelected highways engineers.
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> Ian
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