Plans for Etruria Link Road gather pace

Plans have been submitted for a £40 million project to create a new road between the A500 and Stoke-on-Trent’s city centre.

The scheme involves building a new link from the Wolstanton junction of the A500 to Festival Way in Etruria Valley, including bridges and a roundabout.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council’s scheme will reduce congestion, create better access, and improve safety. The work will also help to attract investment, create new jobs, and complement the key Ceramic Valley Enterprise Zone development area.

The news comes as representatives from Stoke-on-Trent visited MIPIM UK – the country’s largest property trade show – to tell leading developers about the huge benefits Stoke-on-Trent can offer to businesses.

The Etruria Valley Link Road scheme will include:

• Improving the two roundabouts at the Wolstanton junction;
• A new viaduct crossing over the West Coast mainline;
• A central roundabout linking Shelton Boulevard, Newport Lane and Festival Way;
• Replacing the canal bridge at Newport Lane;
• A new canal bridge crossing to Festival Way;
• An extension to Shelton Boulevard.

The scheme will also include three junction improvements:

• The creation of a mini roundabout at the junction of Grange Lane and Church Lane;
• Road widening at Newport Lane between the junction of Maddock Street and Furlong Lane;
• Enlarging the Marina Way roundabout at Festival Park.

If the planning application is successful, main work on the Etruria Valley link road project is expected to start in summer 2018 and be completed towards the end of 2019.

The Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership is providing £26.5m of funding towards the £40m project which will link the A500 and the city centre and open up key areas of the Ceramic Valley Enterprise Zone for development.

LEP chairman David Frost CBE said: “Etruria Valley is an important employment site in a prime position next to the A500. This new link road will be vital in opening up the site, encouraging businesses to invest and bringing thousands of new jobs to the area, a top priority for the LEP.

“We want to capitalise on this fantastic location at the centre of the country by creating the better paid, highly skilled jobs that will help our economy flourish.

“The road will also reduce congestion and improve access, making travelling around Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme easier and bringing more vigour to the city centre.”

Councillor Daniel Jellyman, cabinet member for regeneration, transport and heritage at the city council, said: “The Etruria Valley link road will reduce congestion and improve journey times by creating a new route into the city centre. This improved access is something that will support our businesses to thrive and continue the push to make our city a great place to live and work.

“It is vital that our transport network is able meet the area’s needs for new homes and jobs, and this link road will provide extra capacity to help achieve this. It will be one of the key factors in our plans to help increase the prosperity of the city and ensure Stoke-on-Trent can fulfil its potential.”