Newark and Sherwood District Council leader Paul Peacock declares continued support for A614 and A6097 improvement scheme between Ollerton and Lowdham
Today (February 9), Paul Peacock, leader of Newark and Sherwood District Council publicly declared his ongoing support for the A614 and A6097 improvement scheme.
The transport package, described had having “long been lobbied for” and “long overdue”, will enable the highway network between Ollerton and Lowdham to operate more efficiently by reducing congestion at key intersections.
A letter of support for the project was sent to the leader of Nottinghamshire County Council.
Mr Peacock said: “Newark and Sherwood District Council has been campaigning for the improvement of this route to support our communities for many years. We’ve been working with Nottinghamshire County Council to continue to deliver very positive results in terms of infrastructure delivery, and I’m sure this will be the case with the A614 and A6097 improvement scheme.
“The district council has ambitious plans for the sustainable growth of key communities along this route. The scheme will support the regeneration of Ollerton, Boughton, and Edwinstowe to the north, and Clipstone and Rainworth to the south, all of which are former mining communities. It will also help to alleviate congestion around the historic market town of Southwell, which is a key tourist destination, and is the home of Nottingham Trent University campus Brackenhurst. The scheme should help to improve the quality of people’s lives by reducing congestion, improving safety for pedestrians and cyclists; and by supporting the delivery of much needed housing and employment in the area.
“Outline planning consent for 800 homes [at the at the former Thoresby Colliery in Edwinstowe] was granted in October 2017. As part of the outline consent, agreement was reached with the district council and Nottinghamshire County Council on the upgrade of Ollerton roundabout. Landowner Harworth has been required to contribute £1.3 million to ease the vehicular impact from the development on the roundabout. The section 106 Agreement for Thoresby Vale — signed by all parties — restricts the number of dwellings and employment that can be delivered until works have been completed at Ollerton roundabout. If there’s a delay to this, it will inevitably affect the delivery of this scheme.
“I hope this information is helpful and that the Department for Transport move quickly to approve this scheme so that the much-needed regeneration of this area is not stalled.”
The improvement scheme focuses on five junctions along the A614/A6097 corridor — Ollerton roundabout, White Post roundabout, Warren Hill junction, Lowdham roundabout and Kirk Hill junction.
The scheme has recently progressed with the confirmation of the compulsory purchase and side road orders from the Secretary of State for Transport.
Funded by the Department for Transport and Nottinghamshire County Council, the scheme is a key element of the county council’s strategy to improve local and regional connectivity and support growth and investment in the area.