Galliford Try picked for £136m Carlisle road job

Cumbria County Council has selected the contractor to deliver the 8km link road, aimed at unlocking the 10,000-home St Cuthbert’s Garden Village. 

Galliford Try’s appointment comes after Cumbria retendered for the job last autumn. 

Morgan Sindall Infrastructure had been primed to deliver the project but the price the contractor quoted to the county council “significantly exceeded the project budget”, the authority said. 

At the time the project was retendered, Cumbria estimated it would cost around £144m to deliver. Galliford Try has been awarded a £136m contract to build the road. 

Funding totalling £225.8m has been secured for the scheme, £212m from Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and £13.8m from the council. 

The cost £89.8m difference in the contract cost and the funding agreed accounts for money spent to date on the scheme and other associated project costs including but not limited to detailed design, enabling works, and utility diversions, according to the county council.

A statement from the council said: “Despite several challenges with rising costs of materials, the County Council, City Council and government have remained committed to progressing the project.” 

The new road will connect Junction 42 of the M6 with the A595 at Newby West and is “vital for the economic growth of Carlisle and to deliver the St Cuthbert’s Garden Village”, according to the council. 

The main construction work is due to commence on site in June 2023 and is expected to take at least two years with the road scheduled to open to the public in the summer of 2025. 

As a result of local government reorganisation, Cumbria County Council will cease to exist on 1 April. From then, Cumberland Council will be responsible for delivering the road. 

“What once felt like a pipe dream to build this new strategic road, now really feels like it is happening and gathering pace with the appointment of Galliford Try,” said Cllr Keith Little, Cumbria County Council’s cabinet member for highways and transport. 

“The benefits the road will bring in connecting East and West Cumbria and unlocking both housing for the new garden village and stimulating economic growth and investment cannot be underestimated.”