A CONTROVERSIAL plan to carve up a popular park to create a new one-way road to reduce congestion into Barnsley town centre is set to be approved this afternoon - despite a 2,637-signature petition urging the council to axe the multi-million pound scheme.
The local authority want to divert town centre-bound traffic from junction 37 of the M1 around the new system from a left turn at Broadway’s traffic lights, with vehicles coming out of town using the existing Dodworth Road, which will be made one-way into a four-lane section past Horizon Community College.
The new road bypasses a section of Pogmoor Road - cutting through the park, which would lose about 25 per cent of its land - and prohibits vehicles from the motorway turning right onto Broadway, with motorists having to go around the gyratory and back up Dodworth Road. Highways officers behind the project said it was the most suitable of more than 30 options looked at and planning board members, who meet at Barnsley Town Hall this afternoon, have been recommended to approve the £4.3m scheme.
A planning statement said: “The stated aim is to address the problem with the existing crossroads junction which operates over capacity at the present time, resulting in substantial queuing in all directions during peak hours.
“This would be achieved by removing the conflict that occurs between the right turns onto Broadway from the A628 Dodworth Road and the westbound movement towards the motorway from Pogmoor Road.
“It is predicted that this would greatly improve capacity for traffic on Dodworth Road in both directions, which would lead to less queuing.”
Campaigners say the loss of greenspace, noise pollution and road safety are reasons as to why so many people have objected, while the council’s report - which claimed it took motorists 26 minutes to get from the junction to the town centre - were exaggerated.
A park-and-ride facility at Dodworth, a new M1 junction and free-to-use electric buses were all put forward by members of Penny Pie Park Action Group, but planning board officers said the scheme in its current proposal has ‘great weight due to the lack of viable options’, despite the ‘regrettable’ adverse effects.
The planning statement added: “It is asserted that the congestion is manageable and that the need for the scheme has been overstated.
“Views are expressed that the problems only occur for two hours a day, between 8am and 9am and 5pm and 6pm, which does not justify the proposal.
“Concerns are raised that the development would see similar traffic build-ups to Harborough Hill, Cundy Cross, Stairfoot roundabouts which have all failed to alleviate congestion. The cumulative weight attributed to the negative impacts of the proposal and the associated conflict with the development plan attracts substantial weight. However, it is necessary to consider whether there are other material considerations that exist, which outweigh the identified conflict with the development plan.
“These other material considerations include the need for proposal, the lack of alternative options and other benefits of the proposal.
“It is accepted that the ‘do nothing’ option is not viable as the crossroads is already operating over capacity, leading to significant queuing along Dodworth Road, Pogmoor Road and Broadway during the morning and afternoon peak hours.
“The assessment has established that the crossroads assume a very high status in terms of strategic highways within the borough and that there shall be substantial adverse socio-economic consequences if identified growth and strategic objectives are thwarted as a result of an inability to address congestion through modal shift or failing this, capacity improvements.
“It is considered that the benefits of the scheme attract great weight, primarily due to the lack of viable, alternative options.
“The scheme regrettably gives rise to a number of significant adverse impacts and although these can be mitigated to some extent, they nonetheless attract substantial weight. On balance therefore, while the proposal does not comply with the development plan, the great weight attributed to the benefits of the scheme is considered to outweigh the substantial weight given to the adverse impacts.
“Accordingly, other material considerations exist to justify a departure from the development plan and the application is therefore recommended for approval.”
