Councillors have agreed to spend more than £2m on a temporary link to a footbridge, despite demanding the project be funded by private developers less than a year ago.

At a cabinet meeting on Monday, Croydon Council agreed to spend up to £2.3m on a 16-metre temporary walkway linking the East Croydon station concourse and a £20m footbridge, built by Network Rail.

Developers Menta were last year given permission to build a 55-storey tower block at the Billinton Hill side of East Croydon station, and were required to fund a new pedestrian link between the two as part of a section 106 agreement.

The decision has been condemned by opposition councillors who have branded the project "a bridge to nowhere."

Sean Fitzsimons, ward councillor for Addiscombe, said: "I raised concerns about the bridge to nowhere at the cabinet meetings earlier, and at the planning stage. Now it is being shown that the council is going to have to fund the project. When are you going to admit your incompetence?"

The proposal is part of a huge £50m investment in transport links tacking place across the town centre during the next three years.

Jason Perry, cabinet member for planning, regeneration and transport explained the decision for the council to fund the work.

He said: "Construction on the footbridge has been faster than expected. We are able to bring the budget forward and so have done so to deliver the project relieving congestion at East Croydon early. I don’t understand why anyone would not want this."

The council plans to demand any unspent section 106 funding from Menta be used for other public works when work on the £250m tower complex is near complete.

A spokesman for the council said: ""Once Menta get to the stage of developing the permanent link bridge we will use their already-agreed S106 contribution as a starting point to negotiate that they deliver an equivalent level of overall public realm improvements in the area."