A PLAN to redesign access to a train station and move a war memorial has been strongly opposed by the Royal British Legion.

Hertfordshire Highways has put forward a scheme in the Baldock and Letchworth Urban Transportation Plan (UTP) to relocate Letchworth GC’s war memorial in Station Road as part of improvements to the forecourt of Letchworth Railway Station.

The �1.1m proposal “seeks to improve the segregation of buses, taxis and car parking in the area of the station forecourt, as well as consolidate a number of disparate bus stops into a single interchange.”

The UTP, which was agreed this month, has outlined Broadway Gardens as a potential place to re-site the memorial if the plan is approved after consultation.

But Arthur Scott, secretary of the Letchworth GC branch of the Royal British Legion, told the Comet the memorial, which was erected in 1921, must remain in the centre of the town.

Mr Scott said: “We are strongly opposed to proposals to move the war memorial. It should be in the centre of the town, not moved away.

“It acts as a constant reminder for people but if it’s out of the way in Broadway Gardens it’s open to being unsupervised and vandalised.”

The project, which also highlights the need for more cycle parking, is considered a long-term goal by Hertfordshire Highways, and would not be implemented until five years time at the earliest.

Making Gernon Road in Letchworth GC two-way at the cost of �205,000 has also been outlined in the UTP, which provides the transport vision and strategy for the two towns until 2031. The two-way scheme could be delivered at some point in the next three to five years.

Six ‘cycle corridors’ to improve cycle access are planned to take place in the next two years, including Letchworth GC routes from Hitchin Road to Letchworth town centre and the Jackmans Estate to the Grange Estate.

A route is also planned to link the northern areas of Baldock and Baldock Railway Station to Works Road in Letchworth GC via a bridge over the A1(M).

Reviewing the Letchworth Gate A1(M) junction remains long-term, with no plans to look at a potential �3.85m scheme for at least five years.