£42m plans agreed to tackle A386 bottleneck
LONG-AWAITED plans to tackle one of Plymouth’s worst traffic bottlenecks have been given unanimous approval.
Plymouth City Council’s Cabinet has backed the plans for the north of the city, with the scheme designed to alleviate congestion at the notorious pinch-point between Woolwell roundabout and the George junction.
More than 30,000 vehicles use this section of Tavistock Road each day and there are often queues and delays at peak times, caused by traffic having to merge over very short distances. It was back in 1979 when the upgrade to the A386 was first suggested, but it finally looks set to happen, and subject to the acquisition of land, work could begin in the summer of 2022.
Cllr Jonathan Drean, Cabinet member for transport, told the meeting on Tuesday: “This is a long established pinch-point and people regularly experience frustration and hold-ups and delays.
“These improvements will make a tremendous difference to everyone who relies on this route – not just drivers but also local businesses, bus passengers, pedestrians and cyclists. It will help to improve journey times and bus service reliability, as well as provide new and improved cycle paths and pavements, with safer crossings.”
He added that the scheme would “directly unlock development in the Woolwell urban extension area”, adding it was “a vital piece of infrastructure that will make a real difference to the lives and communities who live in the north of the city and make a real difference to the people of Plymouth”.
The project, which has just been awarded £19.9 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund (LUF), will widen the road to create a dual carriageway along the busy stretch of the A386 and provide new on and offroad cycle paths, wider footways and safer crossing points to support active travel. A second level will be added on to the George Park and Ride site to provide an extra 350 to 500 parking spaces, including 100 electric vehicle charging bays). Woolwell Roundabout will also be replaced with a signalised junction and a new junction will be created at Woolwell Crescent to allow traffic from Woolwell to turn right on to Tavistock Road and travel north.
The sum of £3.34million has already been placed on the capital programme for the development of the scheme to date, along with £5million from the Transforming Cities Fund. Cabinet members were asked to approve an additional allocation of £33,501,475, including the LUF award, bringing the total cost of the scheme to £41,841,475, at the meeting on Tuesday, which they unanimously did.
Cllr Nick Kelly, leader of the council, said: “This has been 42 years in the making and I am delighted we have secured a lot of money for the scheme and will unlock a lot of housing.”