Highways Agency

Safe roads, Reliable journeys, Informed travellers

Introduction

Introduction

The A66 Trunk Road provides a main trans-Pennine route linking the A1 at Scotch Corner with the M6 at Penrith. The existing route is a mixture of single and dual carriageway and the Government's strategy for the A66 is to upgrade the entire route to dual carriageway.

This section of the A66 under consideration lies between the eastern extent of the proposed Temple Sowerby bypass and the western end of the existing Appleby bypass. It is one of six single carriageway sections that we are now consulting on. You are invited to comment on whether upgrading is appropriate and if so by what means. Information on the other five schemes is available from the Highways Agency.(see Further Information).

Existing Situation

The existing A66 Trunk Road between Temple Sowerby and Appleby is 8.5km (5 miles) in length, is of variable width and carries approximately 15,000 vehicles per day, 20% of which are heavy goods vehicles.

Locally, there have been 42 accidents on the A66 in the last five years. There are ten junctions with the local county road network and several private means of access joining the A66, all of which increase the safety concerns for road users. Kirkby Thore village and the hamlet of Crackenthorpe are generally to the north of the A66 although a number of properties are adjacent to the existing road.

Scheme Proposals

Three route options have been identified for consultation as indicated on the map. The proposed standard for the routes is dual carriageway and a typical cross section is shown below.

Orange Option 2A starts near the end of the proposed Temple Sowerby Bypass sweeping south toward the River Eden to follow the line of the disused railway line across Trout Beck to the C3063 Long Marton junction. The route then follows the line of the Roman Road then sweeps south to pass Crackenthorpe to the north to tie in with Appleby Bypass to the west of the existing railway bridge.

Purple Option 2F starts from the end of the proposed Temple Sowerby Bypass and heads east to cross the A66 and then sweeps south, back across the A66 to the south of Kirkby Thore. From here it follows the disused railway line across Trout Beck and continues along the same route as Option 2A.

Turquoise Option 2K starts from the end of the proposed Temple Sowerby Bypass and heads east to bypass Kirkby Thore to the north. The route then sweeps south to cross Trout Beck and meet the disused railway line close to the C3063. From here it continues to follow the same route as Options 2A and 2F.

Access to all the routes from the local road network will be provided by junctions designed to current standards and are intended to be located at Kirkby Thore and the C3063 to Long Marton.

A major feature of each route option will be a bridge to cross Trout Beck and the adjacent flood plain. Each route has a number of accommodation bridges for footpath and land severance issues. All these structures will be designed to minimise environmental impact.

Proposals Map

Environmental effects

Environmental Effects

The Agency attaches great importance to environmental issues. All six proposed schemes will be designed as sensitively as possible. For example, planting of native trees and shrubs would be used to help integrate the road into the surrounding landscape. Steps will also be taken to safeguard water quality, ecology and cultural heritage.

A full Environmental Impact Assessment has been carried out and the results are summarised on the following table.

Environmental Issue	Option Causing The Least Environmental Impact				General effect of ticked option	Comment
	Option 2A	Option 2F	Option 2K	Notes regarding differences in impacts between the routes
Air Quality				Closely followed by Option 2K.	Positive	Air quality will improve for local communities.
Cultural Heritage				N/A	Negative	Further archaeological survey work will be carried out.
Disruption Due To Construction				2A and 2F impact A66, 2K the County road network.	Negative	Every effort will be made to minimise disruption during construction.
Ecology and Nature Conservation				2A is significantly worse.	Negative	The routes are through mainly agricultural grassland of low conservation value. Each route had impacts on a number of protected species.
Landscape Effects: Character				2K is least favoured. 2A & 2F similar.	Negative	Effects will be mitigated by landscaping and planting.
Landscape Effects: Visual Impact				2F and 2K similar.	Negative	Effects will be mitigated by landscaping and planting.
Land Use: Demolition			Demolition of farm buildings on 2A & 2F.	Demolition of farm buildings on 2A & 2F.	Negative	N/A
Land Use: Community Land				No community land affected.	Neutral	Not affected.
Land Use: Development Land				Closely followed by 2F. 2K has significantly more adverse impacts.	Negative	Impacts both positive and negative generally cancel each other out.
Land Use: Agricultural Land				2K significantly more adverse.	Negative	Agricultural land is the only land directly affected by the proposals.
Traffic Noise and Vibration				Little difference between options.	Positive	Noise levels affecting property generated by traffic generally decrease for all proposals.
Pedestrians, Cyclists etc.				Little difference between options.	Positive	Opportunity to provide a safer longitudinal route along the original A66 for non motorised use.
Vehicle Travellers: Driver View				2K is favoured.	Negative	Landscaping and planting will restrict views.
Vehicle Travellers: Driver Stress				N/A	Positive	Improved alignment and signing, fewer junctions improving safety.
Water Quality and Drainage				Differences are relatively small.	Negative	New structure required across Trout Beck.
Geology and Soils				2A and 2F equally favoured.	Neutral	Mine workings to the north of Kirkby Thore.
Policies and Plans				No option is favoured.	Neutral	Proposals generally in accordance with relevant policies and plans.

Reasons for Rejecting Route 2I

View larger image  

• Major impact on the Roman Camp Scheduled Ancient Monument
• Affects a number of properties currently alongside existing A66
• Conflict with the existing landslip at Crackenthorpe
• Vehicles leaving Crackenthorpe heading west, would have to access the A66 via a link to the new junction at C3063

What Happens Next

Your views, together with those of the Local Authorities and other bodies will be carefully considered by the Secretary of State for Transport. A decision will then be announced on whether the proposals are to be taken forward. If they are, then a route would then be protected for planning purposes and developed in greater detail.

By commenting now, you will not prejudice your right to comment for or against any future detailed proposals subsequently published under the Highways Act.

We look forward to seeing you at the exhibition.

Further Information

There are five other sections of the A66 at Public Consultation:

• Penrith to Temple Sowerby
• Temple Sowerby to Appleby
• Bowes Bypass
• Cross Lanes to Greta Bridge
• Stephen Bank to Carkin Moor

Copies of all six public consultation leaflets are available on the Highways Agency website. If you have any questions on this or any of the above schemes please ask at the exhibition or write to:

Highways Agency
Major Projects Team M1
Room 710, Sunley Tower
Piccadilly Plaza
Manchester, M1 4BE.

For the attention of Marilyn Sinfield or telephone 08457 50 40 30