Priority road and transport schemes revealed for Nottingham and Nottinghamshire

The East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) has announced a shortlist of 14 priority transport and road improvement schemes across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, with a total requested funding of over £48 million.

The schemes, put forward by local councils in Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham, and Nottinghamshire, aim to address key infrastructure challenges, improve road safety, and support housing and employment development across the region.

The shortlist includes a mix of local and strategic projects, some of which were already under consideration due to their regional importance. The EMCCA has emphasised that this list is not exhaustive and that further projects may be added as the authority continues to assess the region’s transport needs.

Derby’s Priority Schemes

Derby has four priority schemes on the shortlist, with a combined funding request of £6.25 million. These include:

1. Culvert and Highway Structures Replacement: £1.5 million for the repair and replacement of key assets around the city to ensure the resilience of Derby’s transport network.
2. A52/A52T Spondon Interchange: £1 million for detailed design and construction work to improve this complex junction, enabling increased active travel, bus priority, and improved road safety.
3. Darley Abbey Mills Bridge: £750,000 for feasibility studies, detailed design, and planning approval for a replacement permanent bridge.
4. Merrill Way/A514/Boulton Lane Junction Improvements: £3 million for works to improve this key junction, which is a planning condition for enabling the new A50 junction south of Sinfin at Deepdale Lane. This scheme includes bus priority measures, active travel improvements, and network efficiency enhancements.

Derbyshire’s Priority Schemes

Derbyshire’s four priority schemes total £15.48 million in requested funding. These include:

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1. Landslip Prevention and Mitigation Programme: £8 million for targeted remedial works to address landslips affecting strategic routes on the Derbyshire highway network.
2. Market Town Interventions: £1.5 million for traffic management, active travel, and public realm improvements in key market towns.
3. A6 Historic Retaining Walls: £3.48 million for preliminary designs and geotechnical work to strengthen early 19th-century highway retaining walls between Matlock and Whatstandwell.
4. Chesterfield-Staveley Regeneration Route: £2.5 million for ground investigations to support the outline business case for a single-carriageway road. This £166 million project, paused in late 2023 due to financial constraints, is seen as critical for regional development but has been hindered by the Government’s ongoing review of new development schemes.

Nottingham’s Priority Schemes

Nottingham has three priority schemes on the shortlist, with a combined funding request of £4 million. These include:

1. Real Time Information (RTI) Parking Signs: £2 million to upgrade the city centre’s life-expired off-street car park signing system.
2. Gregory, Lenton & Radford Boulevards: £1 million for active travel enhancements, including increased pedestrian and cycling improvements along these key routes.
3. Streets for People Programme: £1.067 million for small-scale improvements to footways, cycleways, carriageways, parking areas, and green spaces across the city.

Nottinghamshire’s Priority Schemes

Nottinghamshire’s three priority schemes total £22.695 million in requested funding. These include:

1. Priority Maintenance to Carriageways, Footways, and Drainage: £15.195 million for critical maintenance work on assets reaching the end of their lifespan, including road markings, public rights of way, and other key infrastructure.
2. Pipeline Feasibility & Development Work: An uncosted scheme for feasibility studies and development work for future projects.
3. A614/A6097 Major Road Network Improvements: £7.5 million to address a funding shortfall and enable the Department for Transport to consider the full business case for this scheme, which aims to reduce congestion, improve journey time reliability, and support planned housing development along the route.

Strategic Importance and Future Plans

The EMCCA has stressed that the shortlisted schemes are not just about improving transport infrastructure but also about unlocking housing and employment development sites across the region. Many of the projects, such as the Chesterfield-Staveley Regeneration Route and the A614/A6097 improvements, are seen as strategically important for the long-term economic growth of the East Midlands.

Councillor James Brown, Chair of the EMCCA’s Transport Committee, commented: “These schemes represent a significant step forward in addressing the transport challenges faced by our region. By investing in these priority projects, we can improve road safety, reduce congestion, and support the development of new homes and jobs. This is just the beginning, and we will continue to work with our local authority partners to identify further opportunities for investment.”

Conclusion

The £48 million shortlist of transport and road improvement schemes marks a significant milestone for the East Midlands Combined County Authority as it seeks to address the region’s infrastructure needs. With a focus on both local and strategic projects, the authority aims to create a more resilient and efficient transport network that supports economic growth and improves the quality of life for residents across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.

As the EMCCA moves forward with these plans, further details on funding allocations and project timelines are expected to be announced in the coming months.