A ROAD user has said the council's spending of £5m on the new A595 Torpenhow junction is a 'scandalous waste of taxpayer's money', arguing that funds would have been better spent elsewhere. 

At the end of May, Cumberland Council opened the new road layout at the Greyhound Inn/Torpenhow junction on the A595 between Bothel and Torpenhow - a project which was originally started by Cumbria County Council. 

A Freedom of Information request submitted by road user, Andrew Walker, revealed a breakdown in the costs of the project, the number of daily road users, alongside how many accidents had been recorded at the location over the last five years.

On the stretch of road, there have only been three car crashes, two serious and one slight recorded. 

Of the forecast costs, £2.8m went towards construction. 

"It's odd that so much was spent on a junction that so few people use and the accident figures are very low too for that area," Mr Walker said. 

A Cumberland Council spokesperson said the Torpenhow junction was seen as a 'priority' for the local community following public consultations. 

The council became responsible for the Bothel project on vesting day, on April 1. 

Cumberland Council worked with Cumbria’s Local Enterprise Partnership (CLEP), which supplied funding through the UK Government’s ‘Getting Building Fund’ for the works. 

Mr Walker said: "Despite all of this, the proposed roundabout at Broughton/Brigham on the A66 hasn't happened, and this section of the main road continues to be one of the most dangerous parts of the road network in Cumberland.

"It's only a matter of time before more lives are lost.

"I appreciate that this stretch is covered by Highways England, but common sense would tell anyone that this section of road should be sorted as soon as possible."

A spokesperson from Cumberland Council said they were 'disappointed' funding hadn't been secured for the second phase of work on A595 at Bothel.

"In August 2019, an application was made to the DfT for funding to develop and deliver the A595 Bothel Strategic Improvement scheme.

"The Department has now determined that they believe the scheme does not meet their criteria in providing value for money and does not support the view that the proposed improvements would improve journey times, help boost the county’s economy and also create a safer and more resilient road network. 

"Cumbria County Council, who were the lead for this project, were informed by the Department for Transport (DfT), in March 2023 that they would not provide funding for the second phase of works planned for the A595 at Bothel.

"We are obviously disappointed that we were not given further funding from the DfT to progress with the second phase of work in this location, but will continue to work with our communities to find ways of improving our highways," they said.