Shropshire Council reveals costs for building or scrapping North West Relief Road - here's how much

The final bill for the controversial road has been the subject of speculation for a number of years, but has now been revealed after the details were included in the authority's medium term financial strategy.

The document sets out the overall cost of the controversial project, and what the scheme would cost in a variety of scenarios - such as if the council decides to scrap the road itself, or if the government cancels the project.

Planning permission for the road, which also includes the Oxon Link Road, has not yet been agreed - with the council still working on 106 agreements as part of the process.

If it goes ahead the North West Relief Road (NWRR) would complete the ring-road around Shrewsbury.

If planning consent is granted the council will take its 'final business case' (FBC), a document detailing the exact costs and plans, to full council for approval before sending it to government for final agreement.

The FBC is now unlikely to go before the full council before May's elections.

The documents to be considered by full council next week show the full cost of the relief road and the Oxon Link Road, including money already spent, is now £215.12m - of which £151.51m still needs to be found.

The authority has confirmed that in a 'worst case' it could borrow the outstanding amount, but is still seeking money from the government to meet the shortfall - potentially using Local Transport Funding allocated under the previous Conservative government.

It said Community Infrastructure Levy money could also be used, or borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board at a cost of between £1.8 and £6m a year.

Opposition

Last week council opposition leaders, from the Lib Dem, Labour and Green groups all wrote to the government to say they would cancel the road if they take control in May's election.

The authority's current Conservative administration said the paper to be considered next week shows the "very significant financial implications" for the council if it does not go ahead with the project.

One of the main issues is that the council received £54m from the government for the relief road, and £4.2m from the Marches LEP for the Oxon Link Road - around £39m of which has been spent already.

Whether the council has to pay that money back depends on what happens with the project.

Were the council to cancel the project it is expected that all the government money would have to be paid back, but were the government to cancel the scheme then the council would not be responsible for the costs so far.

Figures in the papers show that if the project were cancelled by the council then it would be responsible for paying the £39m - with major implications for an authority already operating on a financial knife-edge.

If the council were to cancel just the relief road, and continue with the Oxon Link Road, then it would still be left with a bill of £31.9m.

In a pitch clearly aimed at his political opponents ahead of May's election, Councillor Gwilym Butler, the council's Conservative cabinet member for finance said: "It is vital that councillors fully understand, and carefully consider, the implications of the various possible outcomes around the North West Relief Road and their impact on the council's finances, so that no one can say they didn't know.

"The best case scenario is of course that the government meets the scheme's full costs as a previous UK Government Secretary of State had committed to because of the huge benefit the scheme would bring for local people and business in Shropshire as well as the direct impact the scheme will have on the Government's wider drive for growth.

"This council remains clear that the case for the North West Relief Road is strong. It underpins the future sustainability of the local economy, the move to more sustainable transport, more effective delivery of the services local people rely on, and tackling congestion.

"Its benefit has been recognised publicly by our NHS, police, fire and the largest bus operator.

"Whatever decision is made after May's election on the NWRR is should be clear what is at stake for the council's budget."