Cheshire East pushes on with £42m Crewe roads package
Cheshire East has started the procurement and land assembly process for a £42m roads package to help support the construction of 1,350 homes north of Crewe.
The North West Crewe package forms part of the Council’s local plan and is designed to unlock a number of sites ahead of HS2 arrival at Crewe railway station in 2027.
The key schemes to be delivered under the proposals are a north-south spine road; a realigned Smithy Lane; an east-west link road from the A530 to the new spine road; and a series of junction improvements.
Other parts of the works package include a new access road to Leighton Hospital and other roads to support the development a masterplan for the Leighton area.
This will include two sites allocated under the council’s local plan; the 850-home Leighton West site, and 500 homes at Leighton.
Remodelling works are planned between Flowers Lane and the A530; and a new roundabout will also be built at Flowers Lane to serve the potential Leighton site.
At a cabinet meeting next week, the council is expected to sign off both the procurement process and the necessary powers to start land assembly to deliver the roads, including compulsory purchase orders.
Cheshire East has appointed property consultants Sanderson Weatherall to assist with land assembly, and said it would aim for “acquisition by agreement” first rather than CPOs.
Overall, the council is expected to purchase 25 acres of land in Leighton to get the scheme underway.
The council is looking to procure the construction package for the roads, which is valued at £26m, through the Scape Civil Engineering and Infrastructure framework.
The framework’s current sole contractor is Balfour Beatty, but the framework is due to be renewed in January 2019, meaning the council can either choose to complete the works with Balfour Beatty, or choose a different contractor, should Balfour Beatty not win a place on the refreshed deal.
Cheshire East is currently using the Scape framework to deliver the Crewe Green roundabout project.
Following the approval, it is expected a planning application for the roads will be lodged in Spring. A funding package was agreed by the council in December last year.
