Consultation to open on Shrewsbury relief road plans

As part of the three week consultation – which opens on October 17 – a number of public information events will be held across Shrewsbury.

The council is on target to deliver an outline business case for the road to the Department for Transport (DfT) by December 22. Responses from the consultation will be brought together and submitted as part of the business case refresh.

The last NWRR consultation was held in 2010.

Since then Shropshire Council has been able to secure the delivery of the Oxon Link Road, formerly part of the north west relief road.

This will connect Churncote Roundabout on the A5 bypass with the Holyhead Road near the Shelton Water tower and facilitate delivery of the Shrewsbury West Sustainable Urban Extension development, north of the Welshpool Road.

Matt Johnson, strategic transport and contracts manager with Shropshire Council, said: “The proposals include mitigation measures to address concerns raised previously about the environmental impact of the road. The proposed road would ease traffic on some of the most used roads in Shrewsbury town centre and in the rural communities to the north of the town, making the town more attractive to live in, to work in and to visit.

“Taking advantage of the reduced traffic within the town centre it would be possible to give more space and priority to pedestrians and cyclists and deliver further elements of the Integrated Transport Package the aspirations of the Big Town Plan.”

Steve Davenport, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “The refreshed business case will allow Shropshire Council to put the concept of a north west relief road into a present day setting, where such initiatives as the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package and the Oxon Link Road are now programmed for delivery over the next five years.

“There is currently no guarantee that a positive business case would lead to funding being awarded. However, over the next year – as the business case is examined – Shropshire Council will continue to liaise closely with the DfT, as well as the Marches LEP, and the Midlands Connect initiative to ensure that the outcome of the business case refresh has as high a profile as possible when future national construction funding is being awarded.”

Last month, Shropshire Council’s place overview scrutiny committee received a presentation on the work currently being undertaken through the refresh of the outline business case.

Councillor Gwilym Butler, chairman, said: “The committee noted the work undertaken to date and welcomed the opportunity to look at the North West Relief Road proposals in the light of current initiatives such as the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package and the Oxon Link Road.

“The broader NWRR ambitions to deliver reductions in the growth in traffic levels through Shrewsbury’s historic centre, improvements in air quality, improvements in journey time reliability for motorists, and improvements in road safety for pedestrians and cyclists were warmly welcomed.

“The committee supported the continuation of the current update work with a view to submission of the draft review report to Shropshire Council Cabinet and Full Council prior to its submission to DfT at the end of December.”