Is the Government really going to pay for Shrewsbury's North West Relief Road?

The Shropshire Council-backed scheme was given planning permission back in October last year, but the authority still needs to satisfy concerns from both Severn Trent Water and the Environment Agency before that approval is complete.

Both organisations want assurances from the council that construction work for the road will not lead to the contamination of Shrewsbury's drinking water – currently extracted from a borehole in the Shelton area of the town.

The council is in the process of trying to do this through a series of agreed 'conditions', although the crucial agreement has not yet been reached.

But, even if those concerns are addressed adequately, and even if the Government approves a 'full business case' for the project, is the money in place for it to actually go ahead?

The Shropshire Star has attempted to secure answers over the financing of the project – although the responses from the Government and Shropshire Council raise further questions over whether the road is 'fully financed' or not.

Firstly – how much will the road actually cost?

The final bill for the road is likely one of the biggest reasons for the lack of a definitive answer on whether the financing is in place.

Although it likely knows the projected cost of the scheme, Shropshire Council has not provided any public confirmation of what that is – despite repeated requests.

Instead, the authority says the costs will be included in a document called the 'final business case' (FBC), which will be prepared and submitted to the Government. It must then be approved by ministers for the project to proceed.

But the FBC will only be created after the planning permission is fully granted – which will only happen when the concerns of the EA and Severn Trent are sufficiently addressed.

So, in the absence of council confirmation of the costs, what do we know?

Well, back in 2019, the cost of the road was estimated at £87m, with the Government helpfully pledging to provide £54m of that bill – a decision still displayed on the Government's website.

Subsequently the council revised its plans, which actually reduced the estimated cost of the project to £80.1m.

But while the scheme has chugged interminably through the planning process the world has endured a global coronavirus pandemic, war in Ukraine, inflation, and a cost of living crisis.

The impact means everything is more expensive, and any trip to the supermarket will prove that. Only the incredibly naive would believe that in 2024 – or whenever it is actually built – you could swap your £80.1m for one complete North West Relief Road.

The best guess at the increase in costs comes from Shrewsbury's Conservative MP, and long-time relief road advocate, Daniel Kawczynski.