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Café goes Dutch on park bill
Page 16
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Chris Tindall reports on the Midway cafe's input to a truck park repair bill.
AN AWARD-WINNING truckstop is contributing towards the cost of maintaining an essential truck park after the council claimed it couldn't afford the bill.
The Prees Heath truck park near Whitchurch in Shropshire was almost closed down two years ago when the cost of repairs hit £300,000.
Problems intensified when two people pursued insurance claims after sustaining injuries at the site (CM 17 October 2002).
Now the owner of the Midway café, based next to the park, has agreed to pay £3,000 a year for the next five years to help fund the repairs. Even though the bill this year will hit £40,000, north Shropshire council says the cash injection is vital. "Our insurers paid out a great deal of money," says the council's
head of engineering, Ken Buttress. "They were saying 'fix it or close it'."
Buttress adds that the popular site is essential for drivers travelling between Bristol and the NorthWest. It is also ideally situated for those needing a break on journeys between Southampton, Cardiff and Glasgow. He estimates that another £100,000 will be needed to complete the repairs. However, Phillip Berkson of the Midway café says the costs spiralled because the site was neglected for so long: "The problem for us is that we don't know if
it has a long-term future — we can't plan ahead." • Rocketing compensation daims from road users for accidents or damage to their vehides
is swallowing up extra funds local authorities have for road maintenance, according to this year's Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey.