CAMPAIGNERS fighting against a proposed £4.3m gyratory system which would cut through a popular park have urged Barnsley Council to revise its plan following a crunch meeting with planning officials this week.
The stretch of the A628 Dodworth Road, running from Town End roundabout to junction 37 of the M1, could receive a raft of work which will see a part of Penny Pie Park go to make way for the new one-way road.
So far more than 2,500 people have signed a petition against the plan, which saw affected residents attend a public consultation held at Barnsley Town Hall on Monday.
Peter Giles, of nearby Lancaster Street, told the Chronicle campaigners left the meeting which was with head of planning Joe Jenkinson with renewed optimism.
“He gave us more than our allotted, pre-booked time and was impartial clearly Joe and his team won’t be browbeaten by the ruling cabinet members,” Peter said.
“Personally I left feeling there was an element of fair play and the planning board officials aren’t just the cabinet’s puppets.”
According to a planning statement, the council want to divert town centre-bound traffic from the motorway around the new system from a left turn at Broadway’s traffic lights, with vehicles coming out of town using the existing but improved Dodworth Road, which would be made one-way into a four-lane section past Horizon Community College.
The new road would bypass a section of Pogmoor Road cutting through the park and prohibit vehicles from the motorway turning right onto Broadway, with motorists having to go around the gyratory and back up Dodworth Road.
The finalised plan was the ‘best solution’ in about 35 options, according to highways bosses, after research showed it took an average of 26 minutes for peak time commuters to get from the M1 to the town centre almost treble the ten minutes it took in 2000.
Although campaigners had expected the application to be decided by planning board members on Tuesday, the issue is set to rumble on for another month while a noise report which will assess the detrimental impact on nearby residents is carried out.
“Traffic isn’t unique just to Barnsley,” Peter added. “There are profound issues across the country with vehicles heading into a town or city centre the A61 into nearby Sheffield proves exactly that.
“The default response from councils shouldn’t be to create new roads or widen existing carriageways. People’s driving habits need to change and other things, such as park and rides, need to be fully explored.
“There’s sufficient land at Capitol Park in Dodworth to do exactly that and HGVs, which regularly use Dodworth Road, could be prohibited from using the route at peak times.
“All this will help towards reducing the time it takes commuters to get from the M1 junction to the town centre.”
New traffic lights will be installed on an altered entrance and exit to Horizon Community College if the plan is approved another area of contention for residents who claim the traffic at peak times will cause ‘chaos’ on Town End roundabout.
Coun Roy Miller, cabinet spokesman, said the council’s been exploring options for ‘some time’ before deciding on its final plan.
“A long-term solution is needed to provide enough capacity for the current volume of traffic and prevent queuing on the M1, as well as accommodating the future business and housing growth aspirations of the borough,” he added.
