Kingswood traffic to be ‘tackled with new park and ride’
£30M LEVELLING UP BID HAS TO BE LODGED BY EARLY NEXT MONTH
A £30m funding bid is being drawn up to ease traffic bottlenecks at major road junctions in Hull.
If successful, the cash would be used to fund a new park and ride bus service between the city centre and Kingswood. In a change to previous proposals, regular shuttle buses would operate on the Stoneferry Road Corridor rather than Beverley Road.
Full details of the bid to the next round of the Government’s £4.8bn Levelling Up Fund have yet to be released. However, council officials in Hull are hoping to secure a big enough slice to be able to revamp major junctions on key routes between the Dunswell roundabout on the A1079 and Sutton with a key focus on junctions near the Kingswood retail and park.
Alongside this, a new park and ride facility would be built in the Kingswood area aimed at creating a new commuter route in the same way as the existing Priory Park site in west Hull operates.
Progress over a northern park and ride site has stalled for many years because of land ownership issues. It is believed the prospect of a significant chunk of new government funding could finally resolve that stalemate.
The bid is being led by Hull City Council in conjunction with neighbouring East Riding Council as some land, including the Dunswell roundabout, falls in the East Riding. The bid, together with full supporting documentation, has to be submitted by July 6.
Mark Jones, the city council’s director of regeneration, said the Dunswell roundabout was close to reaching its capacity because of the growth of Kingswood and its location as the main entry and exit into the city for thousands of commuters from the East Riding.
He said: “A bid is going into the Levelling Up Fund to upgrade the Dunswell roundabout and other roundabouts on highways right across to Sutton which would potentially release more housing land development in Kingswood. It would also include funds for a park and ride site for the north of the city.
“There has always been a long-term desire to have a northern park and ride. What is different now is that we are looking to bring the park and ride service down the Stoneferry Road Corridor rather than down Beverley Road, which is very tight in places.”
Current council planning policies require the Dunswell roundabout to be upgraded before any further housing is allowed in Kingswood, although councillors recently approved plans for 157 new homes in Barnes Way close to Kingswood’s main approach road Raich Carter Way, which leads to the A1079 junction.
A long-running £13.7m scheme to upgrade the Stoneferry Road Corridor route between Bransholme and Cleveland Street is due to be completed later this summer. It aims to improve journey times, reduce congestion and encourage more people to use enhanced cycling facilities along the route.
The council also recently unveiled concept plans to modernise the Priory Park park and ride site, which was originally built with part of the authority’s windfall from selling shares in Kingston Communications. The scheme includes new electric charging points for buses, solar parking canopies to generate energy, better passenger information and a bike-sharing hub.
New transport investment is one of three themes included in the second round of the Levelling Up Fund.
The Government’s prospectus for the fund says: “We are requesting proposals for high-impact small, medium and, by exception, large local transport schemes to reduce carbon emissions, improve air quality, cut congestion, support economic growth, and improve the safety, security and overall experience of transport users.”
As the Mail revealed earlier this month the city council is also submitting a £20m Levelling Up bid under the scheme’s cultural investment category to carry out a major facelift at Hull City Hall. It secured nearly £20m in the first round with the funding being split between the Albion Square development, the continuing regeneration of Whitefriargate, and a new grant regime aimed at bringing more empty properties back into use in the city centre.