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Inner Relief Road
Posted on 18/11/07
P. Klein
Posted on 18th November 2007
R.Reed
Plans for a 18.3 million inner-relief road in Loughborough will take a step forward next week.
On the 23rd November 2007 Leicestershire County Councils ruling Cabinet is set to start the legal process required to build the road by 2011.
The scheme would create a safer environment by removing through-traffic from the town centre and ending the daily conflict of up to 11,000 vehicles and 20,000 pedestrians. Cabinet spokesman on highways, Nicholas Rushton, said: "This road could be a major boost for Loughboroughs town centre, by taking a lot of through traffic away and reducing noise and pollution. We hope the Government will approve the funding.
The scheme so far has already involved public consultation at various stages to seek the views of local people. In February 2005 there was a consultation in Loughborough about extending the pedestrian areas in the town centre. This found that the overwhelming majority, 77%, wanted the completion of the Loughborough Inner Relief Road, allowing the extension of town centre pedestrianisation which would involve converting the road in front of Burtons, McDonalds and Rebel to a pedestrian friendly area.
At this time people also voiced the wish for demolishing the rapidly decaying outdated hospital building in Baxtergate and building a bus station.
Independent consultants (Atkins) examined the various options. They examined four main options:
Option 1: On-street bus stops and stands on High Street and Baxter Gate;
Option 2: On-line bus facility through the PCT site, with an access from the Inner Ring Road and egress onto Baxter Gate, with some additional on-street bus stops and stands on High Street and Baxter Gate;
Option 3: Small bus station on the PCT site accessed from Baxter Gate, with some additional on-street bus stops and stands on High Street and Baxter Gate; and
Option 4: Large bus station on the PCT site, with accesses from the Inner Ring Road and Baxter Gate and an egress onto Baxter Gate, with no on-street bus stops and stands.
The consultants even went out and looked at how often buses were in the town centre and how long they stood at bus stops. They found that at the most 9 bus stops were required. Bus Operators and the Chamber of Commerce felt that a bus station was both unnecessary and wouldnt be used.
Analysis showed that by including a bus station would jeopardise the whole project as it would make the cost 10 times higher and on-street provision was a better solution in terms of quality, deliverability and cost. Nicholas Rushton, the County Councils Cabinet Member for Highways and Transportation, said at the time:"I am convinced that we can provide high quality on-street bus facilities in Loughborough town centre. Even if we could include a bus station, there would be no certainty of Government funding. This is a difficult decision but it is a necessary one to drive the scheme forward.
At a county council cabinet meeting on 31st October 2005 the County Council resolved that they should not purchase any part of the old hospital site to build a bus station.
On the 23rd November 2005 the County Council decide to have public consultation on areas of the scheme including junction options around the relief road and also the options for bus access to the town centre. For bus access, views of whether to keep the area just for pedestrians or to allow buses and pedestrians to mix were to be sought. In December of that year 12,000 leaflets and questionnaires were distributed in conjunction with an exhibition in one of the shop units at the Rushes shopping centre opposite what was Virgin Records. Fifty-six percent of those who responded preferred full pedestrianisation which should have been the end of the matter. However the bus operators, perhaps loosing site that part of the aim was to remove the mix of pedestrians and traffic and thereby reduce accidents were firmly opposed. They bus companies argued that they might lose money and that this would undermine bus service viability, so reducing the level of bus services in the town and restricting accessibility for bus users.
The County Council acknowledged that the consequences of such a reduction in bus services could be severe, so Cabinet is being recommended to agree one-way bus operation through the A6 Market Place for a one-year trial period after the inner relief road opens. After that the bus operation would be reviewed and the bus route could be made permanent or full pedestrianisation introduced. This was passed at the County Council meeting on the 7th March 2006.
On the 29th January 2006 the County Council submitted a planning application for the scheme and eventually on 4th June 2007 the plans were approved.
The road will require an estimated 15.5 million of central Government funding. If the Department for Transport approves, the Council will then proceed with the necessary compulsory purchase orders, side road and traffic regulation orders. Tenders for the work will also be sought. This will enable the construction work to start in autumn 2009. It should be completed by spring 2011.
END
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