Residents optimistic new road will ease traffic pain

Residents living on a newbuild estate in Newark say they are hopeful the town's new link road will make a huge difference to the "nightmare" traffic.

The £100m road connecting the A1 to the A46 in Nottinghamshire opened this week after nine years of planning.

The Newark Southern Link Road, known as Middlebeck Way, is about three miles (4.8km) long and the development covers 700 acres (283 hectares) of land.

When the housing development is complete, the road will be used by an estimated 900 cars an hour and 12,000 a day.

The road, which opened four months earlier than planned, was designed by developers Urban&Civic, the firm which is also building 3,150 homes in the area called the Middlebeck development.

The planning permission for the homes required the new road to be built.

As well as improving transport infrastructure, developers said, the road runs alongside footpaths and a series of drainage ponds that enhance biodiversity and support sustainable water management.

A school and a cafe have also opened serving 600 homes that have already been built.

Edward Smeeton, who has lived on the development for five years, said: "It's going to be massive. Newark can be a nightmare traffic wise so it's a good thing.

"There are certain times of the day when there's no way I would go into Newark."

Yvonne Wilkinson, who has lived in the estate for three years, said: "It's going to be a great asset. I work mostly from home but I do experience the congestion.

"It's absolutely necessary, we're going to have a lot more homes and it will make getting to the A1 and A46 so much easier."

Urban&Civic has provided £65m in funding for the new road scheme.

An additional £20m came from national government, with "significant" additional contributions from Newark and Sherwood District Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, and local public partners.

Nigel Hugill, Chief Executive or Urban&Civic, said: "Everybody knows that it's been tough on the south side of Newark so connecting up the A46 and the A1 is really important.

"It will make a big difference. People will notice it straight away. It will stop a bit of rat-running that took place."

Newark and Sherwood District Council's Labour leader Paul Peacock said the scheme was "not a silver bullet" but would complement other ongoing projects in the town.

These include plans to build a new flyover at the Cattle Market junction, a new bridge over the A1 and the widening of roundabouts and dualling of the A46 Farndon and Winthorpe which have already been approved.

Peacock said: "Congestion is always bad, everyone who lives works and visits Newark knows that.

"This will be a relief but there's other projects like the dualling of the A46 which will contribute to that."

Penny Taylor, co-chair on Newark Town Board, said: "It's wonderful. We want regeneration in the town centre and one of our key difficulties is the congestion around Newark."

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