New £12m bridge over Trent set for approval
SUPPORT FOR NEW CROSSING TRUMPS FEARS OVER PROBLEMS FROM SPORTING EVENTS
NOTTINGHAM is set to get its first new crossing over the River Trent in decades after public support trumped parking and antisocial behaviour fears.
Plans for the new 87-metre-long pedestrian and cycle Waterside Bridge over the River Trent, linking the Trent Basin area in Nottingham to Lady Bay in Rushcliffe, were submitted by Nottingham City Council in February after lengthy delays.
Council officers have now advised councillors to approve the £12m project at the authority’s planning committee on April 17, subject to neighbouring Rushcliffe Borough Council also granting permission for its side of the river.
The cash-strapped city council says the first new city river crossing in 65 years will be paid for using funding from the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund.
The bridge scheme, its location, and its design were all endorsed by what the council called an “extensive” public consultation before the plans were finalised. A report, which will be considered by committee members before they vote on the proposals, outlined the bridge would “significantly improve” accessibility over the river – particularly for existing and future residents of the Trent Basin housing estate and other Waterside area developments.
Pedestrians and cyclists would be able to use the new bridge to get to the open spaces and recreation areas south of the River Trent, council planning officers said.
Homeowners on the Trent Basin estate, where developer Blueprint is building 350 homes and apartments, previously expressed delight over the progression of the project.
The city council’s planners said the benefits for local people outweighed any concerns raised during the consultation process, which included fears that antisocial behaviour like littering and nuisance offroad biking would take place on the bridge. Officials said community safety on the structure would need to be monitored in the future and
CCTV could be installed if required.
Local resident responses also referred to parking issues and increased foot traffic during sports events, the council report said. Officers explained these problems were “recognised” and added “increased traffic enforcement may be necessary” as spectators flock to Nottingham Forest’s City Ground and Trent Bridge Cricket Ground.
Although no public bodies objected to the new bridge, Nottinghamshire County Council’s highways said it had “insufficient information” to know whether it would notably impact traffic or road safety.
“The comments of Nottinghamshire County Council highways are noted and are advised as being addressed in association with the planning application made to Rushcliffe Borough Council,” the Nottingham City Council report said.
Rushcliffe Borough Council said it was unable to comment on the application, as it was currently consulting on the application for the bridge within its own boundaries.
Nottingham City Council previously said the bridge’s construction will start by summer 2024, with the structure expected to be completed by late 2025.