Call for relief road for 6,000 houses
9:10am Saturday 22nd September 2012 in News By David Wiles
A MULTI-million pound relief road is proposed to be built as part of the massive Eastern Villages development to reduce possible future congestion through Covingham and along Oxford Road.
Swindon Council’s final version of the Core Strategy, which sets out the vision for Swindon’s development over the next 15 years, earmarks land to the east of the A419 for three villages totalling between 6,000 and 6,500 homes.
Parish councils and residents in the area have long called for assurances that the appropriate infrastructure will be in place before the homes are built to minimise the impact on existing communities.
Now the full council has backed a motion by councillors Richard Hurley and Dale Heenan (both Con, Covingham and Dorcan) for the Core Strategy to include plans for a link road, which they say should run from Acorn Bridge, on the A420, to either Dorcan Industrial Estate or ideally Commonhead roundabout.
The motion also asks officers to cost up the options, review all of the available funding for the Eastern Villages infrastructure, and open talks with Government to provide any shortfall.
The plan to link to the Dorcan Industrial Estate would require a bridge over the A419.
The White Hart roundabout is still proposed to be re-built at a cost of £22m to cope with the extra traffic, however the relief road would mean that not all traffic from the development would hit the intersection.
Coun Heenan, who is also the cabinet member for strategic planning and sustainability, said: “The White Hart needs to be re-built anyway.
“Our campaign is about creating a new link road from the A420 down to Commonhead to take traffic from the 6,000 houses and businesses which will come in the future in the Eastern Villages.
“Oxford Road cannot possibly take all that traffic. We don’t want it going down Covingham and we think this is the natural way to do it. We need a new link road.
“We have been doing a campaign in Covingham for the last 12 months around the traffic on Merlin Way and with the local plan being published next month we think this is the right time we started pushing for the link road.”
Brian Osbourn, the chairman of Covingham Parish Council, said: “If that helps Covingham traffic-wise, I would welcome it.
“But I cannot see where they’re going to get the funding from. I don’t think they will get the funding from the Government.
“If they get the funding it would be wonderful. But I can see objections coming from the villages up by Acorn Bridge.”
Comments(25)
jerry59
says...
10:54am Sat 22 Sep 12
LordAshOfTheBrake
says...
10:55am Sat 22 Sep 12
RichardR1
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11:18am Sat 22 Sep 12
The water table around Acorn Bridge and South Marston is incredibly high even in the dry season (when we have one). I think this is just one more pie in the sky idea which will end up on the back burner.
Al Smith
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11:54am Sat 22 Sep 12
umpcah wrote:Oxford, Reading, Bristol... where people can't afford the houses so end-up living here and commuting.
6000+ houses means 6000+ mortgages and rents to be paid.. Anyone care to state where the essential jobs will come from to sustain these payments ?
So perhaps it might be a better idea to build a dual carriageway to Oxford and a road that links to J15, instead of this relief road.
faatmaan
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12:10pm Sat 22 Sep 12
itsamess3
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10:06am Sun 23 Sep 12
Hardly a wise comment as to the water tables around the EDA-particularly as to plans for a relief road.
You have often ridiculed Halcrow for their consultations-yet they produced a very comprehensive report commissioned by multiple agencies to tackle these problems complete with the geophysics and their recomendations were implemented to alleviate flooding on the front garden right through to the barnfield sewerage and filtration plants which covers the River Ray flood areas. This combines with the canal.
The next phase will be the River Cole area. Some of the problems are due to the long abandoned canal route and blockages along the rail route and ineffective soak aways which caused problems with the cesspits at the lock keepers cottages-the main problem being at Ingelsham.
Swindons history plays a part as we have ignored the warnings and built recklessly and removed canals that helped alleviate many problems.
RichardR1
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11:10am Sun 23 Sep 12
No workable solution has been found to the road infrastructure issues despite a number of detailed surveys by Halcrow and others.
There is no reason to suppose and in fact more reasons to fear repeat flooding in South Marston if the go ahead for the proposed 2000 houses are built.
Not my view, the view of the South Marston PC and the vast majority of the residents as displayed in the various consultations.
abbotboy
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11:19am Sun 23 Sep 12
itsamess3
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1:06pm Sun 23 Sep 12
Unfortunately for you your reading capabilities are very poor and equally as poor as to the geophysics of the area which are well set out not only in several Halcrow reports-but a host of others.
As i have said the first phase from Whichelstowe with specialist contractors with boring and pipe laying machines has made very rapid progress.
As to S.Marstons issues the drainage and pipework cannot cope mainly due to distance from the pumping stations and will benefit from other projects already underway--try reading some of the relative links in the numerous reports and you may learn a little more than gossip or adverse opinions.
1 2 Could B
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3:06pm Sun 23 Sep 12
There are still small traces of the canal visible from the air.
It would be nice if parts of that could also be restored as a nature defence and interesting feature for the property areas.
This should also be initiated before property building and not left to chance afterwards
greenpacer
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6:51pm Sun 23 Sep 12
itsamess3
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8:17pm Sun 23 Sep 12
Agree-our town centre will become more isolated with so many houses coming here on the fringes.
Until we get councillors who can see how empty our trading estates are and big-fully refurbished office blocks in the centre lay empty-and the hypocracy of building more unemployment will continue to rise.
The paucity of decent entertainment venues shoes us to be a second rate town.
We do look forward to the pleasure area surrounding the Oasis as this could kick start the fortunes of Swindon.
semitonic
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9:48pm Sun 23 Sep 12
It can't possibly mean he is busy as he doesn't have any customers.
When a proper landlord takes over that godforsaken establishment I may pop in for a pint (not an Arkells pint obviously).
1 2 Could B
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11:53pm Sun 23 Sep 12
I don't envisage Arkells selling the pub.
It could be quite pleasant if it had a friendlier barman.
If the eastern development restores any of the canal it might also add to increased tourism
RichardR1
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6:52pm Mon 24 Sep 12
Interesting though if some of the trolls really did come from or know someone in SM they would know who the new tenants are, it's common knowledge in the village, according to a very reliable source.
So 3 brownie points for any of the trolls in naming them.
Still About
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9:45pm Mon 24 Sep 12
I'll guess it's because you are Robert Feal-Martinez
When are the new tenants moving in?
RichardR1
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9:10am Tue 25 Sep 12
As for how do I know, I have friends who live in South Marston, not exactly Nuclear Science.
So Pompey-Bound if you know say, but clearly you don't, hence your silly comment.
1 2 Could B
says...
12:42pm Tue 25 Sep 12
Seriously, do you really think a single person doesn't realise who you are?
itsamess3
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7:54pm Tue 25 Sep 12
Our bobby is obsessed with folk running to the adver right now.
Sadly he has totally missed the point of the article as to a proposed relief road for the Eastern sector-claiming the bridges would be a problem--that being on the existing road--whereas the relief road has several proposed to link the developement--your experience with fly overs could easily demonstrate these routes to link to commonhead which is after all the proposal--time will tell.
itsamess3
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8:14pm Tue 25 Sep 12
Coffee houses in S.M. indeed.
1 2 Could B
says...
9:17pm Tue 25 Sep 12
The above post was replying to your comment, but I inadvertantly hit the "quote" button above :-)
RichardR1
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8:44am Wed 26 Sep 12
Pompey-Bound
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11:04pm Wed 26 Sep 12
RichardR1 wrote:Oh dear nothing Robbo. You are a liar and no amount of running to the Adver will prevent me and others outing you as such.
Oh dear
RichardR1
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11:09am Thu 27 Sep 12
umpcah says...
10:00am Sat 22 Sep 12