Plans for a £40m access road in Gedling are set to move to the next stage as a legal process to acquire essential land looks set to get approval by councillors next Thursday (16)
The Gedling Access Road (GAR) is a 3.8km new stretch of road which will link the existing A612 Burton Road to the B684 Mapperley Plains and has been designed to reduce congestion in Gedling Village.
Nottinghamshire County councillors will discuss the project at next Thursday’s Transport and Highways committee when they are expected to give the go-ahead to start the legal process to acquire land and rights required to construct the GAR , including making changes to side road and other access points affected by the new road.
The legal processes are known as a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) and Side Roads Order (SRO) which are subject to final approval by the Secretary of State. No existing residential properties will be affected and the only buildings affected are outbuildings or are derelict.
The route of the GAR takes it alongside Gedling Country Park and discussions are underway with Gedling Borough Council to ensure that any work required won’t impact on the main Country Park and is in keeping with the area.
A total of approximately 28 hectares of land needs to be acquired to construct the GAR. This is made up of 53 plots of land with more than half of these plots and land already owned by public sector organisations. The remaining plots – covering 14.6 hectares – has 14 individual owners.
A team from Via East Midlands, working on behalf of Nottinghamshire County Council have been in contact with all14 landowners affected by the proposals including a local scout group and Carlton le Willows Academy.
Ron Hodges of the 3rd Woodthorpe Scout Group on Mapperley Plains said: “We’re pleased that after being in regular contact with the agencies involved in this scheme, including Nottinghamshire County Council, we’ve had firm assurances that our buildings will not be affected by the scheme and that we will continue our scouting and guiding activities at Pepperpots Scout Ground which has been our group’s home for the last 40 years.
“Everything has been dealt with in an open and professional way. We have been kept informed at every stage and we’re happy to continue to work with the Council in to achieve the best outcome for our Scouts group.
Craig Weaver, head teacher at Carlton le Willows Academy said: “Since the Gedling Access Road was approved we have been in regular contact with Nottinghamshire County Council and their highways team.
“After many months of discussion the Highways team are aware of our ongoing concerns about access, disruption and safety and we are satisfied that they will continue to listen to our issues as the project continues.
“Accepting that the road must be built, we feel that we’ve reached a fair agreement and are confident that we can all work together going forward.”
Councillor Alan Rhodes, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council said: “This is one of the biggest infrastructure projects our county council is currently involved in. It’s one which will benefit residents, road users and businesses in the long-term.
Gary Wood, Group Manager Environment and Highways, at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We are working to challenging targets to deliver this scheme. If all goes to plan, the main construction works is due to start in spring 2018 with a completion date of Spring 2020.”
Mike Barnett, major projects and improvements team manager at Via East Midlands said, “We have been in contact with the landowners affected by the proposals and have listened to their concerns to see if we can offer any compromise where possible.
“These landowners will be made fully aware of what compensation they can claim and also what they should do if they wish to object to the CPO. And importantly, where negotiations are ongoing, landowners are aware of the fact that legally, any CPO served will continue to be officially listed while negotiations continue to take place and legal agreements are completed.
“We are keen to answer any concerns people have about the proposals – so if you are affected – directly or indirectly -contact our project team on 0115 9774818 or email us on gar@viaem.co.uk or go to www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/GAR where more details about the scheme, including plans and frequently asked questions are available.”
Let’s just plough through the countryside to keep the motorists on side. We’ll have no green space left at this rate, but as long as a few people who can’t be bothered to use public transport and are reliant on running out toxic fossil fuels are happy…