Following your coverage (January 27) of the plans to infill the old rail bridges at Hillworth Road and Southgate in Devizes, we held a residents’ meeting last Monday at the Heritage Museum, to discuss the implications for the neighbours of the works.

Around 30 residents attended, and Wiltshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and his senior bridge engineer were able to respond to residents’ concerns in person.

Residents made it clear that areas of concern for them were site soil not spreading along their roads, careful truck driving, limiting of noise at unsocial hours, and reinstatement of the grassed area to be used for the stockpile. These concerns were taken on board by the council team and will be monitored during the work.

The topic which occupied much of the meeting was that of parking conditions on Hillworth Road itself, which is used not only by residents but also by visitors and by people working in the town. The bridgeworks have highlighted the conflict between the need for parking and for through traffic, and the introduction of higher charges for long- term parking in the town will increase this pressure.

This is a longer-term issue, and the council has been designing a scheme for selective parking restrictions to attempt to meet conflicting demands.

This scheme was intended to be published for consultation at the end of February, unless the consultation process is delayed until the bridgeworks are finished.

Jeff Ody, Devizes Guardians.