The city council's Executive are set to discuss how a successful bid for a new railway bridge connecting Skellingthorpe Road to Tritton Road could be a ‘game changer’ Lincoln’s Western Growth Corridor
At Executive on 17 October, members will discuss the city council’s bid for Levelling Up Funding Round 2 and its importance in bringing forward crucial plans for a new railway bridge in the city.
Earlier this year, the city council, with support from Lincoln’s Member of Parliament Karl McCartney submitted a bid for £20million to government to bring forward the Western Growth Corridor bridge plans to help alleviate congestion in the area.
City of Lincoln Council, sitting as Planning Committee, approved the Western Growth Corridor plans on 12 January 2022.
Western Growth Corridor, which will be jointly delivered by City of Lincoln Council and Lindum Western Growth Community Ltd, will be the largest project undertaken in the city for decades, bringing more than £500 million worth of investment into Lincoln over its lifetime and providing hundreds of jobs locally.
The development will supply the city with 3,200 much needed new homes, a leisure village, an industrial park and transport infrastructure that will help alleviate some of Lincoln’s worst traffic problems.
Significant time has been taken to plan transport infrastructure which will improve the overall road network in the area, including a new spine road, which will run through the centre of the development, providing a main road to connect the development into the city centre and surrounding area.
This will connect Skellingthorpe Road to Tritton Road via a new bridge over the railway, which will play a major part in helping ease current congestion at the railway crossing.
Subject to Levelling Up funding from government of £20 million, the bridge project is set to be brought forward, and has been highlighted as a ‘game changer’ for traffic concerns in the western part of the city.
Subject to detailed technical highway approval, official works, including a new signalised junction into the development on Skellingthorpe Road/Birchwood Avenue, are set to begin in late Spring/Summer 2023.
Plans are currently being developed to minimise disruption for local residents, businesses and commuters during these works.
Leader of the city council, Cllr Ric Metcalfe, said: “The Western Growth Corridor has significant local importance for the growth of the city, and this funding would be a game changer in accelerating the delivery of the project.
“If we could secure the £20 million funding it would enable us to deliver much needed homes for the city far earlier than initially planned, along with securing many construction jobs for local people.
“However, unfortunately, we are told that the second round of the levelling up fund is heavily over-subscribed, and Government has not yet said how much they are going to allocate for a project such as this.
“With continuous financial pressures on local authorities, we hope for a positive outcome when Levelling Up Round Two funding is announced later this year.”