Plans for £42m road development in town revealed

Plans have now been formally lodged for a £42m road development in a South Cheshire town.

Cheshire East Council has this week formally submitted a planning application to start work on the North West Crewe Package (NWCP).

The final plans, following public consultations in March, include 2.9km (1.8 miles) of new roads near the town's Leighton Hospital.

There will be a 30mph speed limit across all the new roads in the scheme, with dual-use footways and cycleways along the routes as well as a number of crossing points.

The plans include:

• A new road linking Smithy Lane to Minshull New Road and Middlewich Road (the A530)
• The realignment of Smithy Lane, Flowers Lane and improvements to other road junctions
• Minshull New Road outside Leighton Academy being closed to through traffic

• Seven new roundabout junctions connecting the new and realigned roads to each other and the existing road network

Work on the scheme is set to take 20 months, with construction expected to begin in September 2019 and be completed in May 2021 if the plans are approved.

A total of 12,427 HGV journeys are expected to be needed to transport material to and from the site during the work, an average of 22 lorry movements a day.

Cheshire East Council's design and access statement said the scheme would provide an improved highway network for Crewe.

In added: "The benefits of the proposed NWCP also extend to unlocking a number of housing and employment LPS sites by improving wider traffic movements and transport links in the locality. These improvements will also reduce congestion and improve access to Leighton Hospital and the Bentley Motors proposals.

"The proposed NWCP includes improvements to the local road network, as well as the construction of new roads which will link Smithy Lane, Minshull New Road and Middlewich Road (A530). These road improvements will help to accommodate the increase in traffic created through the development of the land by providing new access roads and improved junction layouts.

The public are invited to submit comments on the proposed plans, with the council hoping to make a decision by April 2019 at the latest.

We've looked into different aspects of the plans in further detail below.

New and realigned roads:

Primary Hospital Link Route:

A new 1.1km (0.68mile) section of single lane carriageway, the Hospital Link Road will run from north to south and connect the Fairfield Link and Minshull New Road via two new roundabouts (Hospital Roundabout and Minshull New Road roundabout).

The route will connect Leighton Hospital to the planned Fairfield Link and is designed to help improve emergency service's 'blue light access' to the hospital.

Fairfield Link:

If the plans are approved this new link road will be created by realigning Smithy Lane, south of Leighton Hospital connecting the A530 Middlewich Road to the west to the proposed Primary Hospital Link Route and Flowers Lane to the east.

There will be three roundabouts along the route, one at either end connecting to Flowers Lane and the A530 Middlewich Road and another providing access to Leighton Hospital and the Primary Hospital Link Route.

As part of the plans the eastern arm of the current Smithy Lane will be shut to traffic, with access restricted to pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders, while the western section will remain open to vehicles up to the car park and the hospital A&E.

Traffic west of the A&E entrance junction will be restricted to emergency vehicles and 'essential' access only while traffic from the A530 into Smithy Lane from both directions will remain unaffected.

Cheshire East Council hope the new road will provide access for 'the future development of areas and to facilitate NMU (non-motorised users i.e. pedestrians and cyclists) permeability of the area'.

East-West Link:

This new 0.6km (0.37 mile) link road would connect two roundabouts - the A530 Leighton Farm roundabout and the Engine of the North Roundabout (at the junction with the Primary Hospital Link Route).

The Cheshire East statement added: "It facilitates access to and from an area be promoted by Engine of the North (EotN) development area to the north and east of the link and facilitates traffic and pedestrian permeability from the A530 to the proposed development areas.

"It also assists the accessibility of the Bentley Motors masterplan for expansion. The location of the western section of this link road and roundabout has been designed to avoid a historical landfill site and an ecological constraint located to the south of the road as well as a flood plain associated with Leighton Brook."

Flowers Lane Link:

This new link would involve the existing Flowers Lane being realigned to connect with the A530 Middlewich Roundabout at a new roundabout (the A530-Flowers Lane Roundabout).

The northern section of the current route will be moved around 150m south of the existing A530 Middlewich Road/Eardswich Lane junction and connected by a new roundabout.

The existing northern section of Flowers Lane would be closed to through traffic but remain open for pedestrians and cyclists.

The design and access statement said: "This is a new link to accommodate future traffic flows, which would overwhelm the existing traffic signal junction at Eardswick Lane. It also provides for NMU access to the proposed development proposals."

Minshull New Road:

Traffic measures will be introduced on Minshull New Road to reduce the number of vehicles using the road in order to help improve road safety outside Leighton Academy.

The road in front of the school will be closed to through traffic, with Cheshire East saying 'suitable vehicle turning points' will be provided.

Why is the project taking place?

In their community engagement report, Cheshire East Council said the development was aimed at accommodating development in north west Crewe.

The council hopes the new road system will 'unlock investment' in the area - leading to the construction of approximately 1,350 homes, improving the highway network and would 'provide access to future developments identified in the adjacent area'.

The scheme also aims to improve congestion on surrounding routes and improve access for emergency vehicles travelling to Leighton Hospital - as well as supporting expansion 'masterplans' for both the hospital and Bentley Motors.

What impact would the project have for motorists?

The transport assessment accompanying the report says the new junctions are expected to be capable to handle projected traffic flows in the coming years. All the new roads constructed will all have a speed limit of 30mph, with most surrounding roads not having their speed limits changed.

In their design and assessment statement, the council added some speed limits would be different however.

Their statement said: "It is proposed to reduce the speed limit on the A530 to 40mph between the Proposed A530 Flowers Lane roundabout and the southernmost roundabout on the A530. Also, the new Flowers Lane link is proposed to be 40mph."

The new road to the hospital will also include two bus stops for those using public transport.

What about pedestrians?

A number of toucan crossing sites, on Fairfield Link; the Primary Hospital Link route and the East-West Link, are included in the plan. However the council said they only envisaged building the 'connective infrastructure' for them as part of the plan - with some of the full crossings to be developed as other developments occurred in the area.

The scheme will also feature a number of cycle lanes.

The council's statement added: " Pedestrians and cyclists will benefit from the additional links to existing footways and cycleways which would enhance NMU provision further both for the existing facilities such as Leighton Hospital and the proposed surrounding development areas."

What will happen with construction?

Cheshire East Council expects work to begin in September 2019 if the plans are approved. They estimate construction will take 20 months - with work expected to be finished by May 2021.

In a Transport Assessment accompanying the application, Cheshire East Council said working hours would be between 7.30am and 5.30pm on weekdays to minimise disturbance to people living nearby - although some weekend and nighttime working is also expected.

The A530 Middlewich Road is expected to be used as the main access route for deliveries and material being taken away. The council added they expected there to be some impact on businesses nearby during construction, but that it would be temporary.

Their statement added: "There are a small number of commercial businesses located within the vicinity of the proposed NWCP off Pyms Lane. These include Bentley Motors, as well as Crewe Household Waste and Recycling Centre. These businesses may experience short term disruption due to an increase in construction vehicles on the road network. There may also be a small amount of disruption for visitors to Minshull’s garden centre during the construction of the Flowers Lane Link. Any impact on surrounding commercial and industrial properties will be short term insignificant."

What about the wildlife in the area?

In an Environmental Assessment, Cheshire East Council said a number of species were likely to be affected by the construction of the roads, including barn owls, badgers, bats and breeding birds,

To help mitigate this, Cheshire East Council's plans include a number of proposals - including mammal tunnels under the roads, hop overs for birds and the installations of bird and bat boxes.

In their design and access statement, Cheshire East Council added: " Overall, effects on habitats and species have been identified as a slight adverse impact which range from the local to regional level in the opening year. Once habitats and vegetation have had time to establish and mature however, it is anticipated that there would be no significant residual effects 15 years after opening."

How much is this set to cost if it is approved?

A December 2017 estimate put the total cost of the project at around £41.6m.

A report earlier this year said the project was to be funded by £12m of Council funding (inc prior years expenditure), approximately £15m of grant funding and approximately £15m of developer contributions and capital receipts

The council secured £5m from the National Productivity Fund and another £10m grant from the Housing Infrastructure Fund.

Further money is expected to come from developers via Section 106 money.