Shrewsbury North West Relief Road public consultation to be launched

A public consultation is to be launched on 17 October to update people about plans for the Shrewsbury North West Relief Road (NWRR), and to ask them for their current views.

As part of the consultation – which will run for three weeks – a number of public information events will held across Shrewsbury from 17 to 25 October, and information will also be available on the Shropshire Council website.

Shropshire Council is on target to deliver a refreshed outline business case for the road to the Department for Transport (DfT) by 22 December this year. Responses from the consultation will be collated and submitted as part of the business case refresh.

The last NWRR consultation was held in 2010. Since then Shropshire Council has been able to secure the delivery of the Oxon Link Road, formerly part of the north west relief road. This will connect Churncote Roundabout on the A5 bypass with the Holyhead Road near the Shelton Water tower and facilitate delivery of the Shrewsbury West Sustainable Urban Extension development, north of the Welshpool Road.

Matt Johnson, strategic transport and contracts manager with Shropshire Council, said:

“The proposals include mitigation measures to address concerns raised previously about the environmental impact of the road. The proposed road would ease traffic on some of the most used roads in Shrewsbury town centre and in the rural communities to the north of the town, making the town more attractive to live in, to work in and to visit. It would also support the development of the town as a growth point.

“Taking advantage of the reduced traffic within the town centre it would be possible to give more space and priority to pedestrians and cyclists and deliver further elements of the Integrated Transport Package the aspirations of the Big Town Plan.”

Steve Davenport, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and transport, said:

“We’re on target to deliver the refreshed outline business case to the Department for Transport by 22 December.

“The refreshed business case will allow Shropshire Council to put the concept of a north west relief road into a present day setting, where such initiatives as the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package and the Oxon Link Road are now programed for delivery over the next five years.

“There is currently no guarantee that a positive business case would lead to funding being awarded. However, over the next year – as the business case is examined – Shropshire Council will continue to liaise closely with the DfT, as well as the Marches LEP, and the Midlands Connect initiative to ensure that the outcome of the business case refresh has as high a profile as possible when future national construction funding is being awarded.”

During the consultation public exhibitions will be held as follows:

- Shirehall, Shrewsbury – Tuesday 17 October from 5pm until 8pm
- The Darwin Shopping Centre, Shrewsbury – Friday 20 October from 2pm to 5pm
- The Darwin Shopping Centre, Shrewsbury Saturday 21 October from 10am to 5pm
- The Grange Youth Centre, Mount Pleasant Road, Shrewsbury – Monday 23 October from 2pm to 8pm
- Baschurch Village Hall, Eyton Lane – Tuesday 24 October from 4pm until 8pm
- Oxon Church Community Hall, Welshpool Road, Shrewsbury – Wednesday 25 October from 2pm to 8pm

The consultation will also be found on the Shropshire Council website at shropshire.gov.uk/get-involved from 17 October.

Meanwhile, on 14 September 2017 Shropshire Council’s Place Overview Scrutiny Committee received a presentation on the work currently being undertaken through the refresh of the outline business case.

Councillor Gwilym Butler, Chairman of the committee, said:

“The committee noted the work undertaken to date and welcomed the opportunity to look at the North West Relief Road proposals in the light of current initiatives such as the Shrewsbury Integrated Transport Package and the Oxon Link Road.

“The broader NWRR ambitions to deliver reductions in the growth in traffic levels through Shrewsbury’s historic centre, improvements in air quality, improvements in journey time reliability for motorists, and improvements in road safety for pedestrians and cyclists were warmly welcomed.

“The committee supported the continuation of the current update work with a view to submission of the draft review report to Shropshire Council Cabinet and Full Council prior to its submission to DfT at the end of December.”