Government's Middlewich eastern bypass cash has no time limit

The Department for Transport awarded the funding to CEC last October, with the £58 million scheme also set to be funded by developer contributions and the council itself.

But after work on the original Middlewich bypass ground to a halt in 2000 – leaving Pochin Way unfinished – Labour town councillors are fearing a race against time to get the road complete.

Cllr Carol Bulman says she ‘must temper optimism with realism’ and keep the pressure on CEC to complete the project in the interest of all residents.

 

She said: “Remember that solving the town’s congestion is not CEC’s priority. Creating business opportunity is their main aim.

“Work should start from the Booth Lane end. If they start from the other end, they could achieve their business development objectives, run out of motivation or money, and leave us with another incomplete road.”

Cllr Don Stockton, CEC cabinet member with responsibility for transport, said: “We can confirm the funding, for more than £46m, has been secured and there is no stated time limit on this sum.

“Residents can be confident that the contracted works will build a bypass that relieves town centre traffic congestion and opens up development land at Midpoint18 [MA6NITUDE].

“Submission for the planning applications for Middlewich eastern bypass is a major step forward for the scheme. The granting of these approvals will be an essential step towards completing the bypass.

“CEC has committed considerable resources to the delivery of the scheme in recent years, starting with the preparation of a business case that was accepted by the Department for Transport back in 2017.”

READ MORE: CEC submits planning application for Middlewich eastern bypass