GEORGE Osborne and Graham Evans ‘magnificently failed’ to solve the 'Winnington Bridge fiasco', a councillor has said.

A petition calling on Cheshire West and Chester Council to improve traffic problems in Winnington and the surrounding areas was debated by members during the council’s full meeting on Thursday.

The petition, which was launched two years ago by Barnton Parish Council, contains the names of 4,767 people– more than one per cent of the borough's population.

Cllr Sam Naylor, ward member for Winnington and Castle, said the Northwich Transport Strategy commissioned by the council is compiling evidence to document the need to create a solution to the problem, which he says is being referred to as the ‘Winnington Bridge fiasco’.

Fellow ward councillor Paul Dolan said the focus, in the short term at least, should be to install a new bridge crossing, given the proximity of the Winnington Bridge to the Winnington Village development.

Cllr Naylor said a new bridge would cost at least £40 million.

“One of our engineers, I asked him last week, gave a rough estimate to put a new bridge there would cost at least £40 million," he said.

“Realistically this would have to come from central government funding."

Cllr Naylor criticised the former Chancellor and Northwich MP for failing to find a solution.

“From 2010 to June of this year we had George Osborne, the purse holder of the nation’s funds, on the Barnton side and Graham Evans on the Northwich side MP," he said.

“They knew the pressure, the need, the congestion because people like Paul Dolan kept telling them. If anyone could have pulled of a solution it was those two but they magnificently failed to do so.”

Cllr Dolan said hopes were raised when the matter was being taken seriously at Westminster in 2015, although those hopes were quickly dashed.

“The previous MP for Winnington Graham Evans, said he would take up the matter with the Chancellor George Osborne, who happened to also be the local MP for Barnton on the opposite side of the bridge," Cllr Dolan said.

“Mr Osborne then wrote back to the concerned resident saying he would speak to the transport secretary, who is presumable bemused as it was the chancellor who holds the purse strings.

"And he had just approved £640 million to spend on a second Mersey crossing at Runcorn, ironically where the A53 road over Winnington Bridge terminates.

“Indeed we did ask the Chancelleor if he would spread the money a little further south to help us our little bridge crossing sorted, and we neither heard back from either MP after that.”

Cllr David Gleave, from Barnton Parish Council, said the council is opposed to creating a second bridge in Winnington, preferring to utilise the direct railway line between Winnington Village and the A49 via Weaverham Speaking as a public speaker, he said: “It would result in our village becoming a rat run for traffic passing through.

“This would increase the volume of traffic passing through Barnton village and increase the difficulties and safety issues we have already suffered due to the bridge and road infrastructure being no longer fit for purpose.”

Marbury councillor Lynn Gibbon, shadow cabinet member for education and skills, said: “The impact of this traffic will strangle future development in and around Northwich and be detrimental to the quality of life in local communities.”

Cllr Brian Clarke, cabinet member for economic development and infrastructure, said the council will continue to work towards a ‘sustainable solution’ to the problem.