A BOTCHED traffic survey wasted £30,000 of taxpayers’ money and delayed £60million regeneration plans for Hadleigh town centre.

Essex County Council carried out a survey of the number of vehicles which passed through Hadleigh shopping centre in November last year, which cost £30,000.

This was supposed to provide crucial information demonstrating whether plans to re-route the town’s road network would improve traffic flow, or cause too much congestion.

However, the results have had to be discarded after planners conceded they were misleading as traffic conditions were not normal for that time of year because of roadworks at the nearby Sadlers Farm junction, in Benfleet.

Castle Point councillors were supposed to make a final decision over whether the road network should be changed, as part of wider £60million town centre regeneration plans, last night.

However, the meeting had to be postponed until June, to allow time for a new traffic survey to be carried out.

Annette Robinson, 35, manager of the Hadleigh Hats store, in London Road, said: “It’s annoying they got the survey wrong, as it’s something we’ll all have to pay for. I think it’s going to be a traffic bottleneck here, whether or not they change the road layout.”

If the proposals are approved, the High Street would become two way, for both London-bound and Southend-bound traffic.

Motorists travelling east would still be able to access Rectory Road, but unable to join London Road. Tracey Chapman, councillor responsible for highways and transportation on Essex County Council, said: “The first traffic survey was in November 2011, but due to the over-run of overnight works at Sadlers Farm on November 16, the pattern of traffic flow being surveyed did not represent normal conditions, due to the change in traffic flow. She added the new traffic survey, which will also cost £30,000, will be carried out before Easter.