Councils united in support of A120 progress along favoured route as soon as possible
Essex County Council and Braintree District Council both back A120 upgrade route favoured by public in a consultation.
Councillors have re-stated the importance of upgrading a “woefully inadequate” section of the A120 to a dual carriageway and urged National Highways, responsible for the improvements, to press ahead with a widely supported route for the road.
Leaders at Essex County Council and Braintree District Council both stress the urgent need for a dual carriageway between Braintree and the A12, while continuing to back proposals for the route to run from Galleys Corner on the edge of Braintree, to Junction 23 south of Kelvedon.
A public consultation run by the county council showed more than four out of five people support the need for a dual carriageway, while both authorities support the option known as route D.
The elected councillors have re-enforced support for route D after National Highways began re-surveying route options for the road to enable a preferred option recommendation to the Department for Transport early in the New Year.
Cllr Lesley Wagland OBE, Cabinet Member for Economic Renewal, Infrastructure and Planning at Essex County Council, said: “Residents, road users, businesses and the wider economy would reap the benefits of a fit-for-purpose A120.
“Having carried out all the background planning, research and consultation to make the case for the A120 upgrade, we firmly believe Option D is the best and should be progressed as quickly as possible.
“While we welcome National Highways’ work towards agreeing a preferred route with Government, we are determined that there should be no delay in upgrading a road that everyone knows is woefully inadequate for the job it needs to do.
“Our scheme is a very real and practical solution for one of the county’s most important, yet most over-used, roads which, in its current state, stifles economic growth with unreliable journey times, congestion-related delays and safety issues affecting tens of millions of journeys every year. Therefore, we once again urge all involved to progress this as quickly as possible.”
Cllr Gabrielle Spray, Cabinet Member for Planning and Infrastructure at Braintree District Council, said: “We know these improvements to one of our district’s busiest and most congested roads are widely supported by our residents and businesses because they will ultimately create a much-needed stronger road network. Now we’re keen to see the plans pushed forward to help relieve congestion, cut journey times and help drive business investment into our district.
“Both councils have invested millions to get these upgrades to the A120 moving, so it’s important that National Highways presses ahead as soon as possible.”
The comments from the elected representatives come after National Highways began re-surveying route options for the road as part of work to enable them to recommend a preferred option to the Department for Transport early in the New Year.
Essex County Council, supported by Braintree District Council, developed the current proposals for the A120 upgrade and identified the best performing route before handing over all their work to Highways England so it can confirm a preferred route to DfT and seek ministerial approval for the new dual carriageway to be built.