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Longdendale Bypass

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80-682: The Longdendale Bypass (also known as the A57/A628 Mottram-in-Longdendale, Hollingworth & Tintwistle Bypass ) is a long-planned National Highways road scheme in the Tameside and High Peak districts in England. Its aim is to alleviate traffic congestion on the A57 , A628 , and A616 routes that presently pass through the villages. There is both support and opposition for this long-planned scheme, which will pass through

160-558: A Royal Warrant from the Prince of Wales in recognition of the quality of its workmanship; additional warrants would be received in 1910 and 1920. By this time, John Mowlem and Co. had become a partnership that was operated by successive generations of the Mowlem and Burt families, including George Burt , and Sir John Mowlem Burt . George Mowlem Burt, a civil engineer and grandson of George Burt, has been credited with successfully guiding

240-563: A government-owned company charged with operating, maintaining and improving motorways and major A roads in England . It also sets highways standards used by all four UK administrations, through the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges . Within England, it operates information services through the provision of on-road signage and its Traffic England website, provides traffic officers to deal with incidents on its network, and manages

320-511: A project bank account , which is the agency's default mechanism for ensuring that payments flow down through the supply chain and prevent payment hold-ups for sub-contractors undertaking work on behalf of a prime contractor . National Highways' operations are split into areas which are loosely based on the regions of England . These regions are subdivided into nine operational areas as well as eleven areas and routes which are managed by DBFO (Design-Build-Finance-Operate) companies. Each area

400-402: A good fit for one another, both having heavily involved themselves in various private finance initiative (PFI) schemes, taking on various responsibilities and functions traditionally performed by national governments. After the acquisition was completed, Mowlem ceased to exist as an entity, having been absorbed into Carillion's operations. Carillion's management publicly expressed the view that

480-435: A government-owned company with the name Highways England on 1 April 2015. In July 2015, Jim O'Sullivan became chief executive, replacing Graham Dalton. In 2020, the agency launched an advertising campaign using the song " Go West " by Village People and covered by Pet Shop Boys . The lyrics changed to "Go Left", encouraging people to stop on the left hand side of the motorway in case of breakdown. On 19 August 2021, it

560-528: A new Road Period starts, National Highways will provide the Secretary of State for Transport with an SRN Initial Report, including an assessment of the state of the SRN, maintenance and enhancement priorities, and future development needs. Following this, the government produces a draft RIS setting out the high-level outputs that National Highways will need to deliver within the corresponding Road Period, alongside

640-600: A proposed footpath and cycleway between King's Lynn and Fakenham , and in January 2023 King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council demanded that National Highways submit a retrospective planning application. An 1847 skewed masonry arch at Rudgate near Tadcaster , designed by John Cass Birkinshaw for the Harrogate–Church Fenton line , was infilled by National Highways in 2021. The agency had to seek retrospective planning approval from North Yorkshire Council for

720-583: A six-week consultation period during which the Peak District authority responded. Having been estimated at £90 million in 2003, the cost of the proposal was estimated to have risen to £240m–£315m in 2008. On 2 December 2014, the government announced that it would invest £170 m on the A57, A628 and A628 trans-Pennine route, including a bypass for the village of Mottram. The Chancellor of the Exchequer at

800-609: Is a partnership between National Highways, the National Police Chiefs' Council , the breakdown/recovery industry and other road service providers. The Survive Group has been established to improve the safety of those who work on the road network and the travelling public and is also dedicated to the promotion of driving safety. The name Survive comes from Safe Use of Roadside Verges in Vehicular Emergencies. The Survive Group website holds information on

880-666: Is a private company limited by shares, wholly owned by the Secretary of State for Transport . The National Highways Board is the primary governance arm of the company and is accountable to the Secretary of State for Transport. The Board delegate responsibility of the day-to-day running of the company to the Chief Executive who, as the Accounting Officer, is accountable to the Permanent Secretary of

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960-456: Is a website that gives information about the latest traffic conditions as well as details of any roadworks or events that may cause congestion. By selecting current motorway information users can see the average speed between individual motorway junctions, what is being displayed on all the variable-message signs , and images from traffic cameras . The website is run by National Highways' National Traffic Information Service. The Survive Group

1040-630: Is divided into "Areas". They are contracts that are awarded by the Department for Transport . The area teams work alongside the National Highways Traffic Officer Service – providing incident support, emergency traffic management and infrastructure maintenance. They are responsible for the management and operation of the roads in their area. In 2009, fleet tracking has been deployed to assist area teams to manage their specialist winter maintenance vehicles during

1120-603: Is greater than that presently using the main A57 Hyde Road through Mottram. Government-funded research carried out by English Nature found that the proposed scheme would increase greenhouse gas CO 2 pollution in the area by 15,840 tonnes per annum. Furthermore, the costs of the CO 2 pollution were not included in the Highways Agency cost–benefit analysis. In the republished Environmental Statement summary,

1200-751: Is in Bridge House, on a one-way gyratory in Guildford , Surrey . Previously its head office was in Dorking , Surrey. In 2014, the agency signed a ten-year lease with the owner of the Guildford facility. Sopra Steria operates the National Traffic Information Service (NTIS) on behalf of National Highways. NTIS is the information hub of England's strategic road network. The service is based at Quinton , Birmingham and

1280-599: Is managed and maintained by an area team (the Managing Agent; MA) and a contractor (the Managing Agent Contractor; MAC). The M6 Toll is a PFI concession which is also part of the strategic road network. In common with the regulated sectors, National Highways works to fixed funding periods called Road Periods. Each Road Period is currently five years in length, and a particular Road Investment Strategy (RIS) will broadly align with this. Before

1360-498: Is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the performance and efficiency of National Highways, and advising the Secretary of State for Transport on its compliance against the Road Investment Strategy and Licence. The Act also established Transport Focus (previously Passenger Focus) as its watchdog with the purpose of promoting and protecting the interests of users of the strategic road network. Traffic England

1440-444: Is responsible for providing accurate, historical, real-time and predictive traffic and incident information to businesses, the travelling public and National Highways' operations. It collects real-time traffic information from over 10,000 fixed sites on the motorway and all-purpose trunk road network from MIDAS and Traffic Monitoring Unit (TMU) electronic loops in the road surface and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras at

1520-464: Is used by a relatively large number of heavy goods vehicles . Supporters of the scheme say that the A628 is one of the most congested A-road routes in the country, with high volumes of traffic (including HGVs) using a road which is totally unsuitable for the volume and nature of traffic it carries and that there is no viable alternative to a bypass. A survey in 2010 found that the junction of the A57 and M67

1600-553: The Historical Railways Estate (HRE) from BRB (Residuary) Limited . In May and June 2021, the space under the road bridge at Great Musgrave in Cumbria was filled with 1,600   tonnes of aggregate and concrete by Highways England, ostensibly for what HRE managers considered safety reasons. The bridge spanned a 5-mile (8.0 km) section of trackbed which local rail enthusiasts hoped to restore, linking

1680-681: The Second World War , the company's reputation from its works during the interwar period led to it being awarded numerous contracts from the British government. One particularly high-profile project that it was a contractor upon was the construction of the Mulberry harbour units. Other wartime construction projects included the Royal Ordinance Factory Swynnerton as well as numerous tunnels and runways;

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1760-622: The Way to Go initiative from Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), which is calling upon councillors, MPs, and the Peak District National Park Authority to reject the bypass scheme. The campaign group support other measures that it considers would improve local transport without causing damage to the environment. This alternative approach calls for: Some opponents of the scheme also advocate 'Translink' as an alternative proposal, which envisages enabling (through

1840-755: The devolved governments of Wales , Scotland and Northern Ireland . The manual is also used in some parts of the Commonwealth . The authority also produces the Manual of Contract Documents for Highway Works (MCHW), and Asset Maintenance and Operation Requirements (AMOR) which supersedes the Network Maintenance Manual and Routine and Winter Service Codes, and its predecessor the Trunk Road Maintenance Manual. Contractors and subcontractors are generally paid via

1920-504: The 'Glossop Spur', would have linked to the A57 at Woolley Bridge. The Department for Transport published both a map of the immediate area and another showing routes across the Peak District and the location of Flouch, which were scheduled to have associated traffic works. Since 1971 residents of Tameside have been working and lobbying, with local politicians, for a better solution for the A57/A628 connection of Manchester and Sheffield to

2000-605: The Department for Transport, Sustrans , Railway Paths Ltd, Railway Heritage Trust, the HRE Group, Heritage Railway Association , Natural England , Historic England (also representing Cadw ), Historic Scotland and ADEPT. At Congham in Norfolk , a railway bridge designed by the pioneering M&GNJR engineer William Marriott was infilled by National Highways in 2021. The railway route had been identified as part of

2080-536: The Department for Transport, as the Principal Accounting Officer, for the stewardship of public funds. The Principal Accounting Officer and Secretary of State for Transport are both ultimately accountable to Parliament for the activities and performance of National Highways. The Infrastructure Act 2015 established the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) as the monitor for National Highways. ORR

2160-543: The Eden Valley and Stainmore railways to create an 11-mile (18 km) tourist line between Appleby and Kirkby Stephen . Accused of 'vandalism', Highways England were forced to apply for retrospective planning permission, with Eden District council receiving 913 objections and only two expressions of support, and government intervention to pause National Highways plans to infill dozens of other Victorian bridges across England. Advised by planning officers to reject

2240-799: The Highways Agency admit that the scheme will entail "an estimated increase of 9% in emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide". However, in a Statement of the Area address on 21 November 2006, the Leader of Tameside Council announced that 4,500 trees had already been planted, increasing to 10,000 to compensate for the loss of trees when the bypass is built and to help mitigate the increases in CO 2 emissions. The council leader also claimed that each tree planted would offset 75 kg of CO 2 per annum. This figure—for trees to be planted in northern England—is 3.5 times greater than that for trees planted in tropical rainforests. In an alternative proposal to

2320-569: The Highways Agency indicated that the revised information would now be available for public consultation in May 2009 and that the public inquiry could start again in Autumn 2009. In February 2009 the Campaign for Better Transport reported that funding for the road scheme would not be available before 2016. In March 2009 the Highways Agency announced that it was pulling out of the public inquiry, citing

2400-609: The Highways Agency to correct their traffic modelling. The inspector commented that "it was the fifth iteration of the traffic model since the original announcement in February 2006". The inquiry was then "Adjourned Indefinitely Pending the Publication of Revised Evidence by The Highways Agency and Tameside MBC". On 3 March 2008 the Highways Agency responded to queries from the inspector indicating that it expected to have revised evidence available by October 2008. In September 2008

2480-536: The Highways Agency to review traffic evidence, with further adjournments until 18 December. On 4 December 2007 the Highways Agency published Route Restraint Measures – Explanation of the Further Change in the Traffic Forecasts and suggested that this data would not be available until Easter 2008. The inquiry reviewed this new information on 18 December 2007 at which time it was adjourned to allow

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2560-475: The Highways Agency was closer to central government than other infrastructure operators, resulting in a lack of a strategic vision and certainty of funding due to the wider policy environment in which it operated, as well as the limited pressure to drive efficiencies compared to that faced by regulated sectors. After an announcement on 27 June 2013 by Danny Alexander , Chief Secretary to the Treasury , it became

2640-469: The Highways Monitor. Development of the SRN is achieved through National Highways' capital investment programme, currently funded entirely by government through grant-in-aid and set out in the first Road Investment Strategy. For Road Period 1 (2015–20), Highways England invested around £15   billion in its network, with additional funding to address other local challenges in proximity of

2720-542: The Longdendale bypass beyond 2010/11. In December 2006 Rebecca Lush , a long-standing road protester and founder of Road Block, claimed the scheme was "particularly inappropriate and damaging". In January 2007 Stephen Ladyman stated that construction work was expected to start in spring 2013. The change to the proposed timing and costs required a review of the environmental statement, which was duly republished with associated draft orders on 8 February 2007. There followed

2800-588: The M67 – passing through villages of Mottram and Hollingworth, as well as affecting those around it. The plans were restored in the Conservative government's Roads for Prosperity white paper in 1989 following a public consultation process. A preferred route was selected in October 1993 but work was suspended in 1996 following further government reviews of the national road-building programme work. In December 2014

2880-506: The Peak District to link Manchester with Sheffield, with some of the proposed tunnel routes using the existing M67 route to link the M60 and M1 motorways. Plans for a dual-carriageway bypass taking a different route were displayed in 2020. At that time, it was stated that work would begin in 2023. The plans were priced at £228 million. Details of the public inquiry were announced in April 2007. It

2960-624: The SRN relating to the environment; air quality; cycling, safety and integration; and growth and housing. For Road Period 2 (2020-25), National Highways will invest over £27   billion in its network, of which £14   billion is for road enhancements. The rest is for operating, maintaining and renewing its roads, and further funding to address challenges on the environment and wellbeing; users and communities; innovation and modernisation; and safety and congestion. As of this Road Period, National Highways' activities will, at least in part, be funded by vehicle excise duty . The company head office

3040-531: The Survive Group membership details and activities being undertaken by the working groups. It also supplies advice on how to drive safely in a wide range of driving conditions, advice on planning journeys. Survive also provides publications and new guidance produced by the Survive members plus news on new initiatives and forthcoming road safety events. In 2013, Highways England took over responsibility for

3120-597: The acquisition of Ernest Ireland of Bath during 1977, as well as the purchase of McTay Engineering of Bromborough together with its shipbuilding subsidiary McTay Marine during the late 1970s. During 1971, the company expanded overseas via the purchase of a 40% shareholding in the Australian contractor Barclay Brothers , in which it later took total ownership of. The Australian business, re-branded Barclay Mowlem , expanded into all other Australian mainland states, except South Australia , as well into Asia. In 1982,

3200-461: The application, the council's planning committee unanimously refused retrospective planning permission on 16 June 2022. Restoration of the Musgrave bridge to its former condition would cost an £431,000, in addition to the £124,000 spent on the initial infilling work. In July 2023, National Highways' plans to restore the bridge and remove the infill were criticised by locals as they involved closing

3280-455: The associated contracts were collectively valued at £29 million. Having developed itself as a long-standing national contractor, Mowlem developed a network of regional contracting businesses including Rattee and Kett of Cambridge (bought in 1926); E. Thomas of the west country (bought in 1965) and the formation of a northern region based in Leeds in 1970. This network was further augmented by

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3360-408: The basis that it will relieve the three villages of traffic congestion, the Highways Agency's own figures do not fully support this contention. In the environmental statement produced by the Highways Agency, the predicted traffic figures support the following largely temporary reductions in traffic by 2010: All other routes show a marked increase in traffic, both immediately and over time: The aim of

3440-634: The bridge for three months, necessitating long local diversions for regular users of the B6259 which crosses the bridge. Work began in August 2023 to remove the infill material. After the Great Musgrave outcry, National Highways developed a new way to assess the abandoned rail bridges and tunnels it controls, with decisions reviewed in collaboration with experts from heritage, environmental and active travel sectors. The stakeholder advisory forum includes

3520-708: The bypass in November 2023. A final legal challenge to the bypass failed in April 2024, leaving National Highways free to begin constructing the road. The existing A628 trunk road connects the M67 from Manchester to the M1 in South Yorkshire . A single-carriageway road through the villages of Mottram in Longdendale , Hollingworth and Tintwistle and through the Peak District National Park , it

3600-404: The bypass is to reduce traffic flow along (at least) the A57 and the reviewed environmental statement of February 2007 provided radically different traffic forecasts to the originals summarised above. In particular, the new forecast indicated that there would be over 26,000 vehicles per day travelling along Back Moor. According to the data presented by the Highways Agency, this amount of traffic

3680-464: The bypass, Translink claims that the removal of HGVs from the A628 onto a cross-Peak train line would save approximately 100,000 tons of CO 2 per year. 53°27′56″N 1°59′59″W  /  53.46556°N 1.99972°W  / 53.46556; -1.99972 National Highways National Highways (NH), formerly the Highways Agency and later formerly Highways England , is

3760-569: The cold snap. National Highways employs uniformed traffic officers; on-road and control room, as well as specialist staff for work in engineering, surveying, accountancy, and administration. There is a graduate entry scheme, with general entry and specialist engineering entry options. For the Traffic Officer Service each team is supervised by a team manager, one of between six and eight such managers generally working together, to ensure 24-hour management cover. National Highways

3840-490: The communities affected by the bypass in the form of a petition with 9,000 signatures that was delivered to Downing Street in February 2003. In this submission, they formed the conclusion that there were no realistic alternatives to a bypass of the villages to solve the problems that existed. In April 2003 the bypass entered the Targeted Programme of Improvements, recognising the likelihood of increased traffic along

3920-485: The company divested itself of its housing division via its sale to the rival homebuilder Beazer . The company also opted to sell off SGB during the late 1990s. In 1984, a joint venture between Mowlem and GEC was awarded a contract to deliver the Docklands Light Railway (DLR), a fully automated transport system using light rail vehicles serving the redeveloped Docklands area of London. Over

4000-614: The company through the construction of various large scale public works, including the Admiralty Arch and the Port of London Authority Building , as well as various maintenance contracts on behalf of the Office of Works , amongst others. The company was briefly incorporated during 1903, but reverted back to being a private company in 1908. During 1924, the company went public on the London Stock Exchange . During

4080-430: The company worked on numerous contracts issued by the British government, including the construction of the Mulberry harbour units. After the end of the conflict, it continued to developed its network of regional contracting businesses, often via acquisitions. During 1971, the company expanded overseas via its stake in the Australian contractor Barclay Brothers , which it would later take whole ownership of. Mowlem entered

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4160-471: The company's chief executive, ordered a financial review of its ongoing projects along with the restructuring of its construction services operation, splitting it into three divisions (Mowlem Building, Mowlem Infrastructure and Mowlem Engineering) and enacting roughly 300 job losses. During December 2005, it was announced that rival construction company Carillion was set to acquire Mowlem in exchange for £291 million. The two companies were considered to be

4240-521: The decision of the Regional Leaders' Forum , 4NW , to delay the start of the scheme by at least four years. The accompanying press release stated that "the extended period of time between the publication of the draft proposals for the scheme in 2007 and the earliest date at which the Inquiry might be reconvened" was a further factor in the decision to withdraw. Opponents of the scheme support

4320-625: The delivery of improvement schemes to the network. Founded as an executive agency , it was converted into a government-owned company, Highways England, on 1 April 2015. As part of this transition, the UK government set out its vision for the future of the English strategic road network in its Road Investment Strategy. A second Road Investment Strategy was published in March 2020, with the company set to invest £27   billion between 2020 and 2025 to improve

4400-414: The first of several Royal Warrants in 1902. One year later, John Mowlem and Co. was briefly incorporated before being reorganised as a partnership once again; the business was long operated by successive generations of the Mowlem and Burt families, including George Burt , and Sir John Mowlem Burt . During 1924, the company went public on the London Stock Exchange . Throughout the Second World War ,

4480-461: The form of Draft Orders to construct the bypass, make good the older roads, and introduce 'route restraint measures'. The public and other interested organisations were allowed a period of 13 weeks until 5 May 2006 to express their opinions on the proposals. In May 2006 the Highways Agency released information under the Freedom of Information Act of all properties they had purchased in connection with

4560-526: The infilling work and work on trees protected by a tree preservation order. Mowlem Mowlem was one of the largest construction and civil engineering companies in the United Kingdom . The company was established as John Mowlem and Co. by John Mowlem and initially worked on behalf of various local authorities across London. It expanded throughout the nineteenth century, taking on increasingly prestigious undertakings. The company received

4640-477: The mid-nineteenth century; early activities were centred around paving and roadworks at the behest of various local authorities . The business was able to expand considerably towards the end of the century, permitting it to perform prestigious activities, such as its involvement in preparatory works at Westminster Abbey for the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. During 1902, the company received

4720-413: The network as described in the strategy. The current name was adopted on 19 August 2021. The Highways Agency was created as an executive agency of the Department for Transport on 30 March 1994. As part of the Department for Transport's 2010 Spending Review settlement, Alan Cook was appointed to lead an independent review of the government's approach to the strategic road network. It recognised that

4800-648: The next two decades, the DLR would prove to be quite lucrative for Mowlem. During the mid-2000s, Mowlem entered into a period of financial difficulties; in 2005 alone, it issued four separate profit warnings and recorded losses totalling £73.4 million. Several projects undertaken by the firm, such as the Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth and the Bath Spa, had encountered considerable difficulties. Simon Vivian,

4880-551: The other countries of the UK, particularly in Wales where the use of 'national' has been criticised despite transport being devolved to Wales. National Highways is responsible for operating, maintaining and improving the strategic road network (SRN) – the motorways and major A roads in England. The SRN comprises over 4,000 miles (6,400 km) of road and includes various structures such as bridges, tunnels, drainage systems and technology assets including variable message signs and cabling. The SRN includes only around 2% of

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4960-544: The partent company was re-registered as John Mowlem and Co. plc . During 1986, Mowlem acquired the scaffolding specialist SGB Group; its purchase of Unit Construction that same year gave the company a substantial presence in the private house building sector. Within two years, sales were up to an annual rate of 1,200 homes. However, a recession during the early 1990s led to Mowlem incurring losses in excess of £180m between 1991 and 1993, which placed pressure upon its banking covenants that compelled it to respond. During 1994,

5040-431: The point where those roads converge. To the east of this area the route would have continued onto a roundabout which provides for a link road down to the A57 at Mottram Moor. To the east of the roundabout, the preferred route would have proceeded north-east through the Swallows Wood nature reserve, then curved south-east to join the existing A628 east of Tintwistle near Townhead Farm. Another proposed local authority road,

5120-448: The private house building sector during 1986 although, following a recession during the early 1990s , it sold on the housing division to the rival homebuilder Beazer in 1994. The mid-2000s was a period of great change for Mowlem. It entered a period of financial difficulties in part attributed to several high-profile projects not going to plan. After losses totalling £73.4 million were recorded in 2005, its construction services operation

5200-451: The proposed funding. National Highways will then respond with a Strategic Business Plan detailing its plans for delivering the RIS. This is reviewed by the Highways Monitor to assess whether the proposed requirements are deliverable with the proposed financial resources and sufficiently challenging. After the Strategic Business Plan and RIS are finalised, National Highways must deliver the agreed outputs and will be monitored on its progress by

5280-589: The public using the 4,600 roadside variable-message signs , the Highways England website (including a mobile version), social media channels such as Twitter and the telephone-based Highways England customer contact centre as well as distributing information to the media and businesses through a number of data feeds. These feeds are widely used by organisations such as the BBC and local newspaper websites for their own traffic information. Services such as Google Maps and sat-nav operators also use National Highways' data for their traffic information. The motorway network

5360-405: The reopening of the Woodhead Tunnel ) direct rail links between Glossop and Sheffield and beyond. Translink claims the " rolling highway " would be a quick, safe and cost-effective means of carrying freight across the Pennines, a credible alternative to using the A616/A628 road. HGV vehicles would roll-on and roll-off the low-floor wagons. Whilst supporters of the scheme argue for the bypass on

5440-544: The roadside. Additionally it uses anonymous floating vehicle traffic data (FVD) from vehicles to supplement the fixed traffic monitoring sites. NTIS also has access to nearly 2,000 CCTV cameras, 300 weather stations, 4,600 roadside electronic signs, 16,000 roadside electronic matrix signals and incident data from over 250 operational partners including the police and local authorities . It processes this data to create useful intelligence for operational decision making and dissemination of current and predictive information to

5520-434: The route and including proposals to discourage road users from switching from other cross-Pennine routes. Under the Early Contractor Involvement (ECI) initiative the Highways Agency appointed Mowlem to take the scheme forward. The ECI allows for detailed planning work to be carried out while the scheme moves through statutory procedures. On 31 January 2006 the Secretary of State for Transport published formal proposals in

5600-443: The scheme during the previous 30 years, and an updated copy was also released in August 2008. By the end of the consultation period 1,400 people had written letters expressing their objection to the scheme, with a further 1,000 in favour. Stephen Ladyman , then Minister of State for Transport, stated that "life for people in Mottram, Tintwistle and Hollingworth should be greatly improved by this bypass. Getting traffic out of

5680-431: The scheme was approved. In July 1998 the incumbent Labour government published the results of its own review in the document A New Deal for Trunk Roads in England and included the bypass as a scheme to be progressed through the preparatory stages. In November 2002, the Highways Agency submitted a report to the regional planning bodies (North West, East Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber). The scheme received support from

5760-402: The time, George Osborne, gave the go-ahead for an initial scheme of at least £170 million to resolve the traffic issue through Mottram and to build a link road to Glossop. The government would also consult on whether to extend the proposed scheme to relieve pressure on Tintwistle as well. In addition to the works announced, there are also studies and proposals into the possibility of a tunnel under

5840-423: The total road length in England, but it carries around a third of all its motor vehicle traffic. National Highways is responsible for the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) providing the standards, advice notes and other documents relating to the design, assessment and operation of trunk roads , including motorways in the United Kingdom . The manual is produced by National Highways in conjunction with

5920-642: The valley of Longdendale and part of the Peak District National Park . After nearly fifty years, part of the road scheme – the Mottram Bypass and Glossop Spur – was approved by the Highways Agency on 2 December 2014; but almost a decade later, shovels are still to be seen on the ground. Construction was intended to start in Spring 2023, but appeals to the High Court have meant construction has not yet started. The High Court had dismissed an appeal against

6000-794: The villages will make them a safer and healthier place to live". Objections were also received from the Countryside Agency , English Nature , the Peak District National Park Authority and the National Trust . The North West Regional Assembly had presented advice to ministers in January 2006 and then in June 2006 provided a revised sequencing of priority schemes. On 6 July 2006 the Secretary of State for Transport responded to these revised sequences and confirmed that funding provision could be made for

6080-657: The whole of the UK, through the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, even though decisions on the building and maintenance of roads outside of England are devolved to the Scottish Government , Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive . The renaming has met with some criticism, being the third name for the agency in six years, and with reports that 'Highways Agency' is colloquially used more than either newer name. The name has also attracted criticism from

6160-416: Was announced that Highways England would be rebranding to National Highways, thus removing any reference to England from its name. This move coincided with the permanent appointment of Nick Harris as CEO, after taking over as interim CEO from Jim O’Sullivan in February 2021. It was suggested that the 'national' in the new name refers to the fact that the company is responsible for setting highways standards for

6240-453: Was restructured and 300 jobs were lost at the company. During December 2005, it was announced that rival contracting company Carillion was acquiring Mowlem for £291 million. Use of the Mowlem name was discontinued soon thereafter. The firm was founded as John Mowlem and Co. by the stonemason John Mowlem in London in 1822. The company undertook a variety of jobs across London throughout

6320-636: Was the most congested in Manchester. Concern has been raised that the scheme would not have improved safety on the Woodhead Pass, where the majority of serious accidents occur. The scheme envisaged a new dual carriageway that would have headed north-east from the eastern end of the M67, passed under the A6018 Roe Cross Road, Old Road and Old Hall Lane in a 170-metre (558 ft) tunnel approximately 120 metres (394 ft) north of

6400-424: Was to be run by Persona Associates with John Watson as Inspector. An official public inquiry website was launched offering news, transcripts and documentation for download. The inquiry opened on 26 June 2007. On 16 July 2007 the inquiry was adjourned until 4 September with a final deadline for the submission of evidence of 14 August 2007. On 11 September 2007 the inquiry was again adjourned until 19 September to allow

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