Green Light given to A417 "Missing Link"
A 4-mile dual carriageway will connect the Brockworth bypass to the Cowley Junction
After 22 years of efforts and campaigning, Transport Minister Huw Merriman has given the go head for a major road upgrade to the A417
It currently connects Gloucester and Swindon and the development will hopefully boost the regional economy and transform journeys for millions of people.
As it stands, the A417 carries around 40,000 vehicles a day, causing frequent and unpredictable congestion. This leads to difficulties around the Air Balloon roundabout and resulting in neighbouring communities having to accommodate heavy traffic.
According to the National Highways upgrading the A417 will see 4 miles of dual carriageway connecting the Brockworth bypass to the Cowley Junction.
They added that the work will be "sensitive to the surrounding Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and will help unlock Gloucestershire’s potential for growth, support regional plans for more homes and jobs and improve life in local communities."
To protect the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the scheme will be creating new habitats and habitat connections for native wildlife like bats, bees, badger and more to flourish.
National Highways Chief Executive Nich Harris says this is a "significant investment of £460m in our road network that will improve road safety, reduce traffic congestion and improve connectivity for road users and local communities.
“We are designing the scheme to fit sympathetically within the landscape, providing the opportunity to link habitats and support environmental sustainability, while unlocking economic growth in Gloucestershire and beyond.
The MP for the Cotswolds, Sir Geoffrey Clifton Brown told us that this announcement is "a great moment for me.
"Campaigning for something for 15 years, through all the twists and turns. It was on, it was off, it was on.
"To actually get to a situation where the government has now given the go ahead. They funded it.
"Hopefully within three years by 2026, we'll see a new road built.
"So that is going to be a terrific advantage for not only the people of Gloucestershire, but the region and nationally because it is a key link.
"It will provide more jobs for young people, and I will be delighted to see the road actually completed."