Trafford nods through relief road and resi projects
The £25m redevelopment of the Sale Magistrates’ Court site and a £30m Carrington highway scheme have inched forward following approvals at the executive level.
The Carrington Relief Road is intended to take traffic away from the narrow A6144 Carrington Lane and Manchester Road, in what has become a critically important development area for a borough in need of large housing sites.
Trafford’s executive was asked to sign off on the selection of a preferred route that would see a new link road built between Isherwood Road and the Banky Lane junction of the Carrington Spur close to Junction 8 of the M60, cutting through Green Belt to the east of the former Shell works.
The council’s corporate director of place now has the green light to work towards a planning application, including commissioning any surveys or investigations necessary and carrying out consultations.
Trafford needs an additional £12m to fund the project, which is expected to cost £29.4m in total. The council is preparing bids to the Levelling Up Fund and the City Region Sustainable Transport Fund to make up the shortfall.
To date, the council has secured £6m and £8.4m from the Growth Deal fund and Housing Infrastructure Fund respectively, with Section 106 contributions from forthcoming developments accounting for a further £2.8m.
In addition, the council proposes investing £1m to create active travel routes along the existing A6144 Carrington Lane.
The Carrington, Partington and Sale West area has been identified as a significant development location in the Places for Everyone 2021 plan.
The area is proposed for approximately 4,300 homes in the plan period to 2037, and around 3.7m sq ft of employment floorspace.
IBI Group designed the Sale scheme. Credit: planning documents
The 84-home redevelopment of the former court site was approved, not without dissent, at Trafford’s planning committee in March.
As the council is developing the site directly, in partnership with its contractor Seddon, officers sought executive approval to implement that consent and commit the necessary resources to make the scheme a reality.
Included within this are contributions of £350,000 to “increased levels of sustainability” such as air source heat pumps; and a contribution of £260,000 to Trafford Housing Trust towards social rent, as four shared ownership properties have been replaced with social rent properties within the plan.
Trafford acquired the site for an initial £4.3m in 2018, with the building demolished soon after and the site cleared.
Designed by architect IBI Group, the scheme as approved in March comprises 40 townhouses, six semi-detached properties, and 38 apartments across two blocks of three and four storeys. A total of 21 homes are to be affordable.
A further report on the project was presented to the executive by Trafford’s member for housing and regeneration, with access restricted.
A new road between Partington/Carrington and the M62 in the Birchwood area would do wonders for the economic prospects of the area and would significantly reduce congestion on the M60 in the area around the Trafford Centre. At present to drive from Sale to Warrington/Liverpool you have to effectively double back on yourself down the M62.
It wouldn’t be cheap given it would need a bridge across the Ship Canal and Mersey, but it isn’t exactly an area of natural outstanding beauty and the economic benefits for the whole of SW Manchester would be enormous.
By AngryfromManchester
WOW!! Working for Fairclough Building I was a site engineer on the Sale Magisrates scheme, sign of old age when you see your work being demolished. (still busy working)
Take heed the formation of existing ground was not good!
By CBA
All traffic for this new development will go through pinch point of Carrington Spur dual carriageway to the M60. At the moment the Carrington Spur can just cope with present travel levels. Carrington Spur will need to be changed to dual carriage
By Chris Brownhill
Wouldn’t it be far more sensible (although more expensive short term) to connect the carrington spur with the M6 at Lymm, bypassing Partington and Lymm village.?
By Urmston resident
Although I am a property owner living in Sale I am aware of the chronic housing shortage, I would like to see much more social housing in the area.
By Vivienne
As soon as this is complete they should build bollards somewhere along Carrington Lane so it’s only usable for access or by active travellers. Too many bypasses and relief roads go unused by drivers who prefer to rat run on the older road.
By W
I think this is appalling and shouldn’t be allowed through. On the basis of being a small area of green belt and peat (carbon capture) land that FREQUENTLY saves us from flooding and is a vital set of lungs for Greater Manchester which has always had its protected mosses both helping us and the environment and wildlife. Absolutely and categorically AGAINST. This is a money making scheme with councillors voting who have not heard or properly considered both sides of the issue and who don’t much care.
By Caroline Lord
Why get rid of more green belt. Qui bono
By Anonymous
The new road goes through approximately 3 agricultural fields, which are probably already contaminated by the old industrial works, before dissecting a very brown field site. It’s hardly destroying swathes of ancient woodland. The residents of Partington in particular will be delighted to actually be able to leave their town at rush hour, especially given the lack of public transport in the area.
By NIMBY