03/12/2012 Inside Out East

Millions of pounds wasted thanks to blunders over road maintenance. In

a transport special, we ask councils in the east how it

happened. There have been faults on both sides and we are looking to

rectify that to ensure this never happens again. I will be falling

out of love with the car? We had exclusive research on travel across

the region. Meet the homeowners faced with demands for thousands of

pounds for the right to make improvements on their own homes.

cried. And was absolutely horrified. We go in search of the people

behind it. I am looking for Mr Nick Gould to please. I am looking for a

Nick Gould. Can you turn the camera off please? There is a surprise

happy ending. These are the stories that matter here in the east.

Tonight we're in Milton Keynes. Making improvements to your home

can be expensive so imagine being charged thousands of pounds just

for the right to do that. It sounds like reduce but we had an e-mail

from someone in Southend saying that that has been happening to

home honours on one estate there. We all dream of having the perfect

pad but when you outgrow your home, do you sell up and move on? Many of

us don't want that upheaval, preferring to stay put and build an

extension. If you want to do that, you have to consult one of these,

the deeds of the property, which tells you what you can and cannot

do. For instance, here it says we agreed not to upset the neighbours

or to sell alcohol or even a to open a Hippodrome or musical. But

we have discovered a landowner using wording in deeds like this at

to make extortionate demands on a housing estate in Southend. An

administration fee of �50,000 for an extension, �5000 for a licence

to put up solar panels. �1000 to approve this disabled ramp and

�500,000 for consent to build on this empty plot. If you go upstairs,

you can see we have been doing a lot of work here. Kerry has the

builders in. We have this top level up here but unfortunately they have

run out of money so we have not been able to complete that.

reason? A �17,000 demand from the estate owners for a licence. Worse

still, they were in a hurry, they needed extra space for their son.

He nearly died in a forklift truck accident at work last year and has

just come at a hospital after another operation. We were

horrified but our son was very unwell and all we were thinking

where we need to get this done and we don't have a choice. We had a

letter and we had no previous England, they wanted �17,500. They

did and justified it, they said if you want to carry out this work,

that is what you are going to pay, so we didn't have a choice. We had

planning permission and needed to get the work done. We needed to

bring our son home. It is not an isolated case. From the top of St

Augustine's Church, you can get a real feel of the skill of the

problem. In every direction, all the way down to the seafront there,

are 1800 homes, some of them battling with the landlord over

extravagant charges. Across the UK, about 3 million homes are leasehold.

Tenants pay ground rent to the landowners and here it is about �20

a year. The estate was built in a time before planning regulation so

covenants were put in place to protect its character. The property

company which now owns the estate is entitled to enforce covenants

including the licence fees but it has to be reasonable. We have

discovered many cases including some of our people have been

charged thousands for consent even though their deeds specified they

should only be charged a maximum of two Guineas. In today's money, just

a couple of pounds. But some have been asked for much, much more for

their extensions. They sent us a letter, asking us for �50,000.

what was your reaction when you opened the letter and saw that?

cried. I was absolutely horrified to have a letter dropped on the

doormat like that, it is just horrific. We would never be able to

get that sort of money. It would be selling the house. We hadn't been

there long and it was to improve our lives and the lives of our

children. It is quite averages, they clearly thought it was an

asset and they are using the cash, to produce many. It was never

designed us, it was designed to protect that residence before there

were proper planning laws in the area. There is an enormous amount

of fear and its society, particularly amongst those that

were old and honourable in the community. �5300. �3000 there and

�2000 there. They bury all the time. Ron Woodley's home has become

campaign headquarters for the residents' association fighting the

extravagant demands. We have had cases where it has gone to �40,000,

� 50,000 and just recently, they asked a gentleman for �500,000.

There is no rhyme or reason for these amounts coming in? It seems

to be, if they believe you're a week, the more they will charge. If

you are strong and you understand your deeds, it is a small amount. I

have a case from 2009. The couple were moving to Scotland and at the

point of sale, Clisset, we want �5000 because they have done

alterations. It was secondary double glazing. They did not change

the appearance of a house and they put solar panels on the river.

get the feeling this is just the tip of the iceberg? Yes, there are

hundreds of cases. I think it is outrageous. Two years ago, the

residents' association secured a deal for 170 residents who had

carried out alterations. They accepted they should have got

consent before going ahead and each agreed to pay �300. But some

homeowners continue to face demands for thousands. Who is behind it?

We're off to see Pier Management, it collects the demands from

residents. It turns out Pier Management is part of the Regis

Group PLC, one of the biggest private landlords in the South East

with a multi-billion pound global property empire. It is not often we

get an apology but they sent us a letter apologising unreservedly for

residents who were unhappy or suffered distress where procedures

had not been implemented to the required standards. They said the

allegations had been taken seriously, practices had been

extensively reviewed and this will not happen again. We asked for an

interview but it declined, they have not explained why the high

demands had continued for so long. We're here on the Burges Estate,

this is the home of Nick Gould, one of the directors. Shall we see if

he has anything to say? We're told that he is often here. I am looking

for Nick Gould, I am from the BBC Inside Out programme and other dyke

to speak to him about charges being levied on the Burges Estate.

have the wrong address. We know that he does live here but there is

no sign of him so let's ahead to the hotel that his company owns and

see if we can locate him there. Hello, I am looking for Nick Gould.

Sorry, he is not here, can you turn the camera off? We try the Regis

Group PLC headquarters in Southend. Is he in today? I would be keen to

talk to him. And with that, they hung up. Not available. The

residents' association has made a formal allegation against Regis

Group PLC to Southend police. confirm that we have received

allegations and we are establishing the facts, looking to work with the

CPS to see if criminal offences have taken place. As much as I have

my own personal view on the standards of what is going on, this

is a matter that has a crime being committed? The company says it

utterly refutes any wrongdoing in lot and was unaware of any formal

police investigation. After we wrote to the company, several of

the residents have had a rather nice surprise. After 16 months

waiting for her complaints are to be dealt with, Kerry has just had

news. We had a phone call the week after you came. The company sent

around the female representative who presented us with an apology

and a refund cheque for or the �15,000 that we had paid. So we got

it all back. Over the moon. What are you going to do with the money?

We're going to do the decorating and building work and finish of the

work we should have been able to do 60 months ago. There is more good

news, Sarah's demand for � 50,000 dropped to �900 and after we

contacted the company, even that has now been refunded. They

defended the fee of �500,000 for the empty plot saying it would be a

substantial property and the case needed to go to tribunals. There is

a further development - the company told us they have decided to sell

their interest in the estate. For these homeowners, that will be an

end to extravagant charges for the right to improve their homes.

The campaign doesn't stop there. Ron Woodley from the residents'

association says the next step is to tighten the law on pieces,

making it their for millions of home owners around the country. If

you think there is something we This our love affair with the car

over? Everybody gave up and got used to using Facebook and phones

and sitting around and all using public transport that I don't think

anyone cares about cars anymore. Everyone who uses the roads relies

on men being kept safe. It is the job of the council to make sure

that happens. We found out that in some parts of the East, that has

not happened and it is costing taxpayers a lot of money. The story

starts here in Milton Keynes. Milton Keynes is designed for the

car. It has over 1000 bridges, more than Venice and for the last few

years, a company called Mouchel was maintaining them. The company was

being paid by the council to look after these bridges, but some of

the work was not being done, leaving taxpayers out of pocket and

some bridges in need of urgent repair. Milton Keynes is not the

only council in the east to be let down by Mouchel. We ask how this

can happen. We have a good track record of road safety and I think

that is something we are proud of. The bridge inspections are a slur

on that. There has been faults on both sides and we are looking to

write that are wrong. We want to ensure this does not happen again.

This is what can happen if bridges collapse. In 1978, a lorry driver

was killed here. For 30 years there was no further problems until

January this year when Milton Keynes Council made a shocking

admission, that it was unable to confirm its bridges were safe.

you turn around and have a look at that post. There is a crack in it.

It is lethal. George Harlock was a bridge inspector for Mouchel.

contract was to inspect, plan repairs and get them done. In my

time, it was not happening properly. I saw a lot of bridges that were

unsafe or in need of maintenance. The problem is that at some point

in the past, these not have been stolen. He raised his concerns, but

he said no one listened. He went out and fixed one of the Bridges

himself. He even filmed it. It took him 20 minutes to do the job.

Mouchel was paid over �1.5 million for servicing these bridges. Some

of the work was done, but a number of bridges were not maintained.

There is nothing to stop someone going through. This safety system

is not safe! Not in this section. The citizens of Milton Keynes it

will go on paying taxes for the neglect for years. Hertfordshire

County Council has lost money because of Mouchel. Its design this

bus lane but the signs were wrong and unsuspecting motorists were

caught out. Around 30,000 of them. Signs that should have warned

drivers that cars were banned were not clear. Vijay Goatley got two 60

than fines in one day. How often it did you use this part of the road?

Almost every day. When you came through here and you were caught

out of by those cameras, did you have any idea that they were there?

I had no idea because I was driving through year all the time. How do

you feel are given that you have always used to this route's and I

was quite angry. It was almost like there was no warning. It was only

later that when you do it again and you come past and have a look and

you realise that there are signs. It was not very clear. Mouchel

would not give us an interview but said that the signage was installed

in accordance with all regulations, but in April a tribunal had ruled

that the signage was unlawful. The council is now offering to pay

everyone back. I take it you will be applying for your money back?

Yes. I could do with my money back. Mouchel's contract ended in October

and was not renewed. Hertfordshire council refuse to be interviewed

but said that overall the company had met the terms of its contract.

Given the problem with the bus scheme, the council said it tried

to get his money back but legally it cannot. Thanks to this blunder,

the reforms are going to cost the council and tax payers over �1

million. In Milton Keynes, an investigation found that Mouchel

was at fault and had not carried out some of the work it was

supposed to. They told us it had met the terms of its contract.

Councils are responsible for making sure private contractors carry out

work. The report also found that Milton Keynes council was to blame

for not overseeing of this work properly. Why did it take so long

for you to take action after concerns were raised? The bridge

programme was the subject of some discussion between us and Mouchel.

We have had some contractual disputes which are coming to an end.

The important thing is that we put the past in the past and learn from

it and we move on. You say you have got of the disputes sorted. How you

done at? That is a sensitive issue. That is between us and them. We are

in a better place now than we were before. It is a sensitive issue,

but this is spending taxpayers' money. People in Milton Keynes are

paying for something that should have been maintained, repaired and

that job was not happening, so it may be a sensitive issue, but

viewers will say this is my money and things have not been carried

out that should have been by accompany that was outsourced to do

a job or by the council. resolution that has been reached is

a good one for the council and that is the taxpayer as well. We do not

know exactly what agreement was reached but what we do know is that

emergency repairs are now under way. Although Mouchel has been involved,

the council has brought work in house and it hopes to complete it

by the end of next year. We are getting our inspections up-to-date

and we have done a huge programme of putting things right and we are

moving forwards. The first lot of emergency repairs is costing

�650,000. The council has renegotiated the contract with

Mouchel which it says gives the council more flexibility but this

has come at a cost to the taxpayer. Does that mean in that Mouchel will

not be repairing bridges, inspecting bridges here? They will

not be carrying out many functions as of the end of December because

of Milton Keynes council Cabinet took a decision to bring the

services of that they currently deliver back into a wholly on

subsidiary company of the council. We have come to an amicable

settlement. That is a financial settlement to get out of a

contractor that meant you were paying them an annual fee! Yes. It

was a 12 year deal and we have paid to come out of that early. How much

did you pay to get out of it? That is subject to discussion. The

papers were tabled in closed session last night and that is

commercially sensitive issue. went back to the council to find

out how much that settlement has cost taxpayers. The council told us

that the figure will not be made public.

Travelling along the canal is a nice way to get around but a

favoured method of transport is the car. We have had a love affair with

that for the last 50 years. We have had exclusive access to research

suggesting that that love affair could be going cold. Here is

Richard Westcott. Building roads is controversial but not building them

can be controversial as well. So how do the planners get it right?

How do they decide what to spend our taxes on road or rail? The only

way you can ever be sure is to been yourself into the future and we all

know how easy that is. When these fans were watching their favourite

series back in the 1960s we thought we knew how we would be travelling

by 2012. There was top of having a personal car that flu. Sci-fi got

it wrong. Most of us get around the same way we did 50 years ago,

having your own jet pack remains a distant dream. Ever since I can

remember, we have assumed that traffic is going to get worse and

worse. After all, we really love our cars! Well maybe not. Whisper

it, but there is a rumour going around that we are falling out of

love with an hour for Wales. They had even given it a name, Peak Car.

So what is at peak Khara? Look at UK traffic growth in the 1960s and

1970s when we could not get enough cars. By the 1990s the trend was

slowing and by 2002 average mileage per-person it stalled. Is the love

affair with the car cooling down? What seems to be happening is that

it in many advanced countries including America, is that traffic

growth due to car use is simply not going ahead at the same rate so

that it used to. Now Inside Out has been given and the first piece of

research into the car in the UK and this report is full of surprises.

It shows that some of us are driving more than ever, but some of

us are changing the way we travel. Take the young men. When I was

young I could not wait to get my hands on the keys to my dad's Mk 4

Cortina with reversing lights. What a lot of young men eyes of getting

my driving licence as a rite of passage but it seems that is

changing. Market trader Lee Vernon is 19 that he will not be adding to

the traffic any time soon. He has been forced to sell up because he

has been quoted at �2,800 to insure his three-wheeler. I love it. It

looks great. It is a classic car. The insurance is too much and I

cannot afford it. The research shows he is not alone. Young men

are driving at 2000 miles per year less than they were in 1995. Women

though actually driving more than they used to. What is going on?

think what has changed his attitude Wise, everyone has gave up and got

used to using Facebook, phones, sitting around or using public

transport and I do not think anyone cares about cars anymore. One of

the big things from the report is that young men are not driving so

much and there are a lot of explanations. Rise in education,

rise in insurance costs. The important point is that if this

trend carries on at them we will see a lot less car traffic and a

lot less car ownership as well. what else has the report found.

This is the rainy 716 am Warwick Parkway to Marylebone. Over the

last two years, the numbers using this line have gone up by 40%.

According to the report, that is in line with the national trend. Since

the mid- 1990s the distance the average person travels by rail has

soared by more than 60%. The last time the trains were that busy was

during the war. The key growth that we have seen is in two areas.

Business travel in the morning and the other is on leisure travel,

especially at weekends were train travel has become much cheaper. At

the same time as fuel prices are increasing, it costs more to drive

a car, congestion is increasing, so the value of creation is tilting

towards rail. All those gadgets mean you can now work or play on

the move. You can even book your ticket on the train if you can get

a signal. While business travel by rail is up, company car mileage is

down by 40% between 1995 and 2007. That is before the recession.

Scrapping tax breaks made the difference and it has had a big

impact on traffic in London. Despite a more people moving to the

capital, there are fewer cars here, but the report found that people in

the countryside seemed to be driving as much, if not more than

ever. Of course, in big cities you do have a lot of options for

getting around. Fairfax Hall runs a London company making specialist

gin and vodka and things he has distilled the perfect formula for

company travel. When they need a car are van the but it from a club

and pick it up from a designated parking space later. We are a small

business and we do not have a lot of money. We invested everything we

had into the Distillery and investing loads of money into a van

did not seem like a good use of capital. It is relatively low cost

and the other benefit is flexibility. You can jump into a

brand-new vehicle and drive at 15 minutes' notice. OK, so what does

this research mean for the future of the UK car industry? We have had

a bit of a boom recently. The UK is actually on course to produce a

more cars than at any time since 1972. That is not because we are

all buying a new car. 80% are being exported. These are the these are

heading for Asia and South America. It is not just the car industry

that will be looking at this. The Department for Transport is

planning a major road building programme all based on the

assumption that traffic will go up by 44% over the next two decades.

What if they have got it wrong? After all, since 1989, successive

governments have over estimated at traffic growth. This is the range

of predictions, the red line is what is actually happening. There

is always a risk. And the key thing that that Department for Transport

model dos is take a wide red -- range of data and insurers it is

rigorously analysed, a lot of use of things by their for us to look

at and I am not convinced that it shows we have reached Peak Car.

Government points out that the UK population is predicted to grow by

another 10 million in the next 25 years. The RAC Foundation who

helped fund the report says this means we are still going to need

more roads. This is not the end of the car. The use of the car is

declining but for 70% of the population people will need to use

cars unless they have railways and buses available. Most people will

not have those. Almost half a century ago when Star Trek started,

this is what we thought travel in the 21st century would look like.

It is pure 1960s. It all goes to show just how hard it is to predict

the future. The danger is the end up assuming it will be like a

bigger version of what we have today. The motor car has been in

the transport story of the last 50 years and I never thought I would

say this, but it just might not be the transport story of the next 50.

What does this button do? If you want to find out more about how

traffic has changed, you can go to our website. If there is something

you think we should do a story about contact --, e-mail me. I am

on Twitter as well. I will see you next week. I will be back with

these stories from the east. We look at one solution to debt that

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