Gedling Access Road: 3,300 trees to be planted next to new bypass

A new area of woodland with 10 different species of trees will be planted alongside part of the new multi-million pound Gedling Access Road.

Concerns had been raised that several hundred trees would be dug up to make way for the road, but it is now hoped the new woodland will more than make up for the number of trees lost.

The plan came about because huge quantities of earth needs to be moved to make way for the 3.8 km road. 

Several options were considered for where to put the 165,900 tonnes of earth – the equivalent of 27,650 adult African elephants, or 753 Boeing 747s.

The Conservative-led Nottinghamshire County Council calculated that it would take 9,300 lorry loads (18,600 return trips) to move the soil off site.

One idea was to move it to Dorket Head Quarry to help fill sites which had been dug up. But the quarry is not yet ready to be filled, and the impact of HGV trips was deemed prohibitive.

Instead, the construction equipment which will be on site anyway will transfer the waste soil to the new area of woodland, which is off Arnold Lane in Gedling.

Councillor Pauline Allan represents Arnold North for Labour, and said: “My husband has been a member of that scouts since he was 12 so we’ve both been aware of it for a long time. It’s nice to see a solution that the scouts are happy with and the community are happy with.

“The other one is that the transport of the huge pile of soil so easily from where the GAR is going to be is a bonus, and I can’t think of a better place to put it.

“I’ve very pleased that this is a good solution, and I’m happy this is happening.”