Review finds cycle trails project was ‘undeliverable’
Only half of the Saints Trails will be created
A multi-million pound project to create new cycleways across Cornwall was “undeliverable” and has since only created half of the intended new routes planned. An independent review of Cornwall Council’s Saints Trails project has been published and whilst criticises how it was undertaken does not blame anyone for the fiasco.
The Saints Trails approved by the council’s Cabinet in 2019 aimed to create 30km of new multi-use trails which could be used by cyclists, walkers and horse riders. However after a series of delays the council scrapped half of the proposed routes and then reduced one of the two remaining pathways.
As a result only 51 per cent of the original project is set to be delivered, albeit at the same cost of the original scheme and over the time period originally planned. The scheme was originally costed at £19million with £17m from National Highways and £2m from the council.
The original Saints Trails consisted of 30km of routes linking Perranporth with Newquay; Truro and St Agnes; St Newlyn East to Carland Cross; and Trispen with Idless. What will now be delivered will be 13.4km of pathways linking Perranporth with Goonhavern; and Truro to St Agnes.
Concerns were raised about the scheme after a report went to the council’s audit committee in January 2021 highlighted that the project was running £5m over budget and was set to miss a deadline for the National Highways funding. When problems were raised some councillors described the project as an “unmitigated disaster” and a “total shambles”.
As a result of that the council worked to reduce the overspend and also, ultimately, decided to cut back the project and announced that two of the planned routes had been scrapped whilst a third had been reduced.
Following that the council commissioned the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) to carry out an independent “lessons learned” review of the Saints Trails. This has now been published and is set to go before the council’s economic growth and development overview and scrutiny committee next week.
Among its conclusions the review found that the project had been “undeliverable” in its original form. Issues identified included the need to acquire land to construct the new routes and that landowners had been reluctant to sell.
As a result the council was forced to resort to compulsory purchase order (CPO) powers which would ensure it could acquire the land required. However, the review states that the timescale for that process would go beyond the deadline set for the National Highways funding and so it was always known that the project would not be deliverable.
The review states: “The project appears to have gained an unstoppable momentum even though, at the time the decision to proceed with the Saints Trails project was taken, the “red flags” in relation to timescale for completion, budget and land assembly including the likely need for CPO were apparent. The project was undeliverable in its original form within the parameters agreed with National Highways.
“Many of the issues that have since manifested stem from the decision to proceed with a project that was always likely to take longer and cost more. This was despite the warning signs that had been articulated as part of the council’s governance processes and is evidenced by the fact that negotiations with National Highways to extend the funding deadline commenced almost immediately the project had been approved by Cabinet.”
The review also found that there had been issues around the management of the project and said that there should have been a Senior Responsible Owner (SRO) for the scheme to provide leadership and should have been someone “relatively senior who has control or influence over all aspects of the project”.
However, it found that “roles for the Saints Trails project were not clearly defined at the outset”. It adds: “In the absence of a defined role for the SRO, the project appears to have lacked sufficient clear direction for the critical first year of project delivery.”
In the final conclusion the report states that land was the ‘Achilles heel’ of the Saints Trails explaining: “By the time Cabinet approved the Saints Trails, only fifteen months remained to acquire land, complete the detailed design and to complete the works being funded by National Highways. Yet the project was already behind schedule, with delays in entering into the funding agreement with National Highways and in bringing Saints Trails to Cabinet for approval.
“This made the delegated authority provided to pursue CPO in December pointless since insufficient time remained for CPO to be effective in time for works to be completed by the funding deadline.”
The review also added: “It also seems the overwhelmingly positive response from public consultation overshadowed a realistic assessment of the difficulties that would be encountered in land acquisition, which ultimately led to the much reduced scope of the National Highways funded Saints Trails.
“It is clear that council officers put a great deal of effort into trying to deliver what proved to be undeliverable within the constraints they had to work within, particularly in relation to timescales. With unlimited time, the council may eventually have completed the land assembly required to complete the Saints Trails as originally envisaged though this would have come at a cost.”
A number of recommendations have been made as a result of the review and these will be considered by the overview and scrutiny committee when it meets next week. The recommendations cover issues such as the management of projects and the monitoring of progress and costs of schemes.
The 32-page document will go before the economic growth and development overview and scrutiny committee when it meets next Tuesday (Jan10) at New County Hall in Truro.