Good news - A57/A628 Mottram-Tintwistle Bypass plans axed
March 17th, 2009Tameside Green party welcomes the good news that the A57/A628 Mottram-Tintwistle Bypass has been rejected for funding by The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and 4NW.
The road scheme, which had been plagued by substantial cost escalations, would have gone through the Peak District National Park and parts of the North West. But council leaders in the North West have now decided not to fund the road.
The Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and 4NW, working in partnership, have submitted the Northwest Regional Funding Advice (RFA) for 2008/9 – 2010/11 and up to 2018/19, to Government on behalf of the region and the the A628 Mottram Tintwistle bypass and the A57 Glossop Spur were not included.
Tameside green party along with many other environmental organisations succesfully lobbied the NWDA and 4NW to abandon this ill thought out project.
Tameside Green Party’s recommended to 4NW and the NWDA that they end their support for the the A628 Mottram Tintwistle bypass and the A57 Glossop Spur and instead that they invest in a strategy for the A628 that provides a sustainable solution which would be more in line with Local, Regional and National policies on transport and the environment.
We also pointed out to 4NW and the NWDA that the estimated costs for the bypass had increased from £184 million in July 2007 and subsequently reached £223 to £315 million by June 2008.
We asked 4NW to take action in support of their aim of “tackling climate change and mitigating its effects” and making the issue of tackling climate change “central to the region’s transport plans.”
We asked the NWDA to accept that constructing new roads to accommodate future traffic growth is neither environmentally nor economically sustainable and that instead they should be increasing the role of public transport together with making best use of existing highway
infrastructure through the development of effective strategies for Transport network and demand management.
We urged them to instead consider funding public transport schemes, such as, investing in new rolling stock on existing rail routes,reopening the woodhead rail route for carrying freight and as a regional passenger service, further expanding the metro system to Denton, Hyde, Stalybridge and Glossop, these solutions could provide our communities with more integrated transport systems.
Tameside green party support the comments of Emma Lawrence from Save Swallow’s Wood campaign who said: “Of all the schemes being proposed Mottram Tintwistle was the most expensive and the most environmentally damaging. This is the first time a sensible decision has been made relating to the bypass and is a real cause for optimism amongst campaigners, as it effectively kicks it into the long grass.
The decision shows the region is way ahead of local politicians in understanding the transport needs of our villages. What we need is an integrated transport solution not a damaging and expensive road scheme. The next step is for local politicians to accept that the bypass is never
going to happen and to turn their attention to low-cost low-carbon
solutions that will benefit local people and the environment and be
deliverable in the short term. We would ask them to show their support instead for lorry ban across the national park; a proposal that is popular with local residents, has the support of the Peak District National Park, and would bring immediate relief to the villages for a fraction of the cost.”




