A major road improvement project in Plymouth has been awarded £19.9m from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund and announced in Chancellor Rishi Sunak's Budget.
The Woolwell to The George transport scheme is intended to tackle congestion and improve public transport on one of the city’s busiest roads. Announced in spring 2021, the £4.8bn fund aims to support projects that improve everyday life.
The funding will be used to extend the George Park and Ride service to provide a further 300 to 500 car parking spaces and to tackle congestion along the busy stretch of Tavistock Road between Woolwell Roundabout and the George Junction, one of Plymouth’s worst traffic bottlenecks.
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The multi-million pound scheme will replace Woolwell Roundabout with a signalised junction. Tavistock Road will also be widened to provide on and off road cycle paths, wide pavements and safer crossing points, and a dual carriageway on this section.
Cllr Jonathan Drean, cabinet member for strategic planning and infrastructure, said: “This is great news. Woolwell is a well-known bottleneck on our network, with people often experiencing long queues and delays. The project will make a tremendous difference to everyday life for everyone who relies on this stretch of our road network.
“It’ll help drivers, local businesses and bus users by tackling journey time unreliability as well as providing new and improved cycle paths and pavements with safer crossings.
“We’ve had lots of feedback on the plans for improvements along this stretch and the LUF fund provides an opportunity to not only finalise the design but also to build on the investment we have already secured from the Government and will complement other schemes in the area such as the completed Derriford Hospital Interchange and Derriford Transport Scheme, as well as the Forder Valley Link Road, currently being constructed.”
The Woolwell to The George highway scheme will increase capacity on the A386. This stretch is currently single carriageway in both directions, linked by dual carriageways to the north and south. It is a pinch point on this route, causing long queues and delays, especially at peak times.
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With significant growth planned for the north of the city and traffic forecast to increase along this route Plymouth City Council said it needs to make improvements to reduce delays, congestion and journey times.
The Derriford Transport Scheme and Forder Valley Link Road are already being progressed but problems north of Derriford Roundabout also need to be dealt with, the council said.
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The Plymouth and South West Devon Joint Local Plan sets out a development allocation of 2,000 houses at Woolwell (to the north of the scheme); therefore a key part of the scheme is bus priority measures aimed at providing a direct, fast bus route from the new residential development at Woolwell to the city centre. Under the plans, Tavistock Road will be widened to provide a dual carriageway and Woolwell roundabout will be replaced with a signalised junction. A new junction will also be created at Woolwell Crescent.
In addition, there will also be new and upgraded footways and cycleways and safer crossing points to support active travel, as set out in the Council’s Climate Emergency Action Plan. A second level will also be added onto the George park and ride site. In early 2021 the council said it had already secured a £5m contribution from the Department for Transport’s Transforming Cities Fund towards walking and cycling improvements and was continuing to explore all funding opportunities to support this scheme.
Announcing the funding in his Spending Review and Autumn Budget, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “This Budget delivers for the people of the South West. From Bristol to Bath, Plymouth to Exeter, we are providing communities with the investment for stronger public service, levelling up opportunity and boosting the economy.
“The £540m to enhance local transport links, £495m to improve roads and over £5m to reopen railway stations will help local businesses thrive and boost jobs and investment in the region.”
The Levelling Up Fund sees £131m going to six South West projects from the first tranche of allocations from the Fund:
- Upgrading ferries to the Isles of Scilly.
- Supporting the University of Gloucestershire to bring empty buildings back into use.
- Regenerating Cinderford Town Centre.
- Expanding the George Park and Ride site in Plymouth.
- Linking Gloucester City Centre with its docklands.
- A package of improvements along the A38 corridor north of Bridgwater.