Highways Agency

A38 Dobwalls Bypass

Introduction

In early 2001 the Deputy Prime Minister, acting as the Secretary of State for Transport, announced that a scheme to provide a bypass for the village of Dobwalls in Cornwall had been added to the national road programme and included in the Targeted Programme of Improvements (TPI), now known as the Programme of Major schemes.

The Highways Agency appointed consultant Mott MacDonald to review the scheme route that was established in the early 90s as part of the larger A38 Liskeard to Bodmin improvement scheme

Following the work of the consultants, and two public consultations in 2002 and 2003 a final route has been identified and details have been published as draft Orders. This proposed route is similar to the earlier route with the main difference being that it reconnects to the A38 closer to the western side of Dobwalls.

Background

The A38 is part of the trunk road network that links mid-Cornwall to Plymouth and beyond. It is one of only two trunk road routes to Cornwall. Between Plymouth and Liskeard the A38 is high standard dual carriageway over much of its length. However, at Dobwalls the trunk road is a single carriageway, with an additional lane only on the short, uphill section on the westbound approach to the village.

Options to improve the A38 from Liskeard to Bodmin have been studied from time to time over many years. The last major investigation resulted in protected route corridors at both ends of this section of the A38 in 1992, followed by the middle section in 1994. In 1996, these proposals were dropped apart from a bypass for the village of Dobwalls, and the statutory route protection for this section was reconfirmed in 1997.

Various options were appraised and compared in terms of their performance, including environmental factors. The route now being taken forward was the result of this selection process. A major factor in the selection of the Preferred Route was the need to minimise adverse effects on the environment, particularly on the East and West Looe River tributaries and also to avoid the Area of Great Landscape Value in the vicinity of High Wood.

Why a Bypass is Needed - the Issues

• Some 200 properties front the A38 in the village of Dobwalls.
• On a daily basis, and particularly in the summer and at weekends, traffic builds up along this single carriageway section of the A38 and is often at a standstill. On average, around 21,000 vehicles travel along the road each day, 10% are heavy goods vehicles. Queues are a regular occurrence.
• Long queues form at the signal-controlled junction of the A38 with the A390. To relieve congestion, a one-way traffic diversion scheme operates on summer Saturdays.
• The setting and environment - noise and air quality - of the village is adversely affected by the existing trunk road. It also causes community severance.
• The A38 in this area has an accident rate that is above the national average for this type of road.

Proposed Route

The Published Scheme would create a new dual-carriageway road between the end of the Liskeard bypass and the A38 west of Dobwalls. The proposed route is to the north of the village and takes on board comments received since the 1992 Preferred Route. Near Looe Mills, the new alignment is closer to the existing A38, reducing the intrusion of the new road into the attractive valley area to the north. At the western end, the bypass is aligned closer to the village to minimise severance and provide a more direct link to the A390. We consider that it achieves a balance between the existing problems and minimising the impact of a new road on the environment.

We are proposing that the bypass would connect to the A38 at a new roundabout west of Dobwalls. In addition, we are also proposing to provide a road from the roundabout south to a point on the A390 to connect the Bypass with the St Austell road. This would enable the A390 traffic to use the Bypass rather than travel through the village of Dobwalls.

Full details of the proposed route, including a plan, can be found in the Non-technical Summary of the Environmental Statement publication.

Quieter surfacing would be used on the new road. Where the road emerges from cutting, earth mound screening would be provided where possible between the road and nearby housing to reduce traffic noise.

Other important factors are:

• 15 agricultural/holdings would to be affected by the Scheme
• 35 hectares of agriculture land would be acquired to build the Scheme
• It is envisaged that about 90% of the current traffic through the village would transfer to the Bypass.

Rejected Options

The following options were considered and rejected for the reasons given below:

• The existing Preferred Route. The 1992 Preferred Route would cause the severance of large farming operations and would also impact on the East Looe tributary valley area.
• Two routes south of Dobwalls, either side of the railway line. These routes have been rejected for their effect on the open countryside, high cost and impact on properties and heritage at Moorswater.
• A modification to the eastern end of the Preferred Route passing to the south of Moorswater. This was discounted for its effect on Lantoom Quarry and impact on properties and heritage at Moorswater.
• A single carriageway route close to the northern fringe of the village. This has been rejected for reasons of safety and because it would not overcome the congestion problem.

What Happens Now

Draft Orders for the proposed Scheme were published on 27th January 2005 and 3rd February 2005 and there follows a period for anyone to write to the Highways Agency with their comments of support or objections. This period ends on 29th April 2005.

In addition, a Public Exhibition was held on Friday 4th and Saturday 5th February 2005 at the Memorial Hall, Dobwalls. Staff from Highways Agency and their contractors, (Parsons Brinckerhoff Ltd and Interserve) were in attendance to explain details of the Published Scheme.

The list below are the steps that have/are being taken for the delivery of this Scheme:

• Preferred Route and alternative routes investigated.
• Public consultation.
• Preferred Route.
• Outline Design.
• Publication of draft Orders and Environmental Statement.
• Public inquiry (if necessary).
• Secretary of State announces Decision.
• Land acquisition and detailed design.
• Construction starts.
• Road open to traffic.