Residents of Sunderland are being offered the chance to shape proposals to change one of the city’s busiest A-roads.
Sunderland Labour Group is giving residents a chance to comment and vote on proposals to improve the A690 on Durham Road.
Sunderland City Council is revising the road layout as part of its ongoing highway maintenance programme.
However, instead of council executives shaping the proposals, the city’s ruling political party has opted to let residents have their say on the improvements.
This includes whether the no-car lanes remain as they are, scrapping the no-car lanes all together or making the lanes bus-only.
Cllr Phil Tye, chair of Sunderland Labour Group and a councillor for nearby Silksworth Ward, said: “Durham Road is one of the busiest roads in the city, with thousands of residents using it each and every day.
“Sunderland City Council is carrying out a consultation on the potential to convert the no-car lanes into bus only lanes and Silksworth Labour strongly believes more needs to be done to ease congestion.
“Currently, the layout of the lanes creates additional traffic in our community by traffic bypassing Durham Road traffic jams and using Silksworth, Plains Farm and Farringdon as a route to avoid traffic jams, and changing the no-car lane into bus-only would only add to the congestion.
“This is why we have opted to give the people a say on the proposals. It is one of our most popular roads, so it is only right that any proposed changes to its layout work for the local residents and businesses who will be impacted most by any changes.”
The campaign is the latest in a string of initiatives by Sunderland’s ruling Labour Group to give residents a say on the city’s future, the most recent of which is a chance to name the New Wear Footbridge.
“As a party, we have made a commitment to engage more with residents and businesses on the developments that will impact them and this is another fantastic example of that,” he added.
“It’s the people of Sunderland being given a say on the future of Sunderland. It’s what progressive, local politics should be all about.”
To have your say on the proposals, visit: https://silksworth.org/durhamroad/