Nearly 600 people attended events in Merseyside this week to find out more about proposals for a new bypass to the Port of Liverpool.
Highways England held two public events at the SING PLUS Centre in Seaforth and the Park Hotel in Netherton on Tuesday and Thursday, where people were able to drop in at any time during the afternoon and evening to meet the team developing the plans.
Environmental specialists have begun carrying out surveys as part of design work for a new bypass, investigating habitats for otters, birds and bats which would need to be protected by law during construction work. Work to investigate air quality, noise levels and ground conditions will also be taking place over the next few months.
Around 23,000 vehicles currently use the existing route of the A5036 every day, passing hundreds of homes and several schools in Litherland and Netherton. They include around 2,500 HGVs travelling to and from the port – equivalent to one lorry joining the A5036 every 30 seconds.
The proposed new three-mile dual carriageway would take traffic away from communities by Church Road and Dunnings Bridge Road, reducing congestion and making journeys quicker and safer for residents and drivers.
A public consultation on the preliminary scheme design is due to take place next year, ahead of a Development Consent Order application being submitted to the Planning Inspectorate for permission to build the road. If the scheme is approved then construction work could start by the end of 2022.
Carl Stockton, senior project manager at Highways England, said:
“We’d like to thank everyone who took the time to attend our public events, and we’ve also sent out newsletters to almost 20,000 homes and businesses to keep people updated on our proposals.
“We’ll be carrying out surveys during the autumn as part of the design work to develop our plans and need to dig some bore holes and small trenches in the park to assess ground conditions, so we’re keen to let people know what’s happening.
“We will hold a formal consultation once we have a preliminary design for the bypass so that everyone affected by the scheme can have their say on the plans.”
The Port of Liverpool is already the busiest port in the North West and the amount of freight travelling through it is expected to grow significantly over the next few years. The proposed bypass through a section of Rimrose Valley park would connect Princess Way at the Port of Liverpool to the motorway network at Switch Island.
The noise and air quality surveys taking place over the next few weeks will require temporary monitoring sensors to be installed at several locations on the A5036 and in Rimrose Valley park.
Small trenches and bore holes will also need to be dug to investigate ground conditions in and around Rimrose Valley. These will be filled in and the land will be returned to its present condition once surveys have taken place.
More details on the proposals for the new A5036 bypass to the Port of Liverpool are available at https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/a5036-port-of-liverpool-access.
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