Major highways projects

Major highways projects
A509 Isham bypass
A509 Isham bypass - Updates
A43 Northampton to Kettering improvements

A509 Isham bypass - Updates

February 2023

A bid for Major Road Network funding was submitted to the Department for Transport in March 2020 and they invited us to progress this by submitting a Strategic Outline Business Case, which was done in December 2020. The Borough Council of Wellingborough provided funding to progress the necessary work on the scheme.

The first section of the road, south of the A14, has been constructed as part of the DB Symmetry development adjacent to A14 junction 9.

£1.859m of funding from the Department of Transport was secured in October 2021 towards the next stages of developing the proposals for the bypass.

The council’s Executive agreed in June 2022 to amend the preferred route of the scheme to tie into the roundabout being constructed as part of the DB Symmetry development adjacent to A14 junction 9.

There are two main elements to the work, preparation of the:

planning application for submission in July 2023
Outline Business Case for submission to DfT in July 2023 shortly after submission of the planning application

The main work involved in the planning application is the preparation of the environmental statement, which involves extensive ecological surveys which have to be conducted at the correct time of year for the species or habitat involved. The July 2023 dates are later than previously expected as more work has been required than originally expected.

Alongside both the business case and the planning application there will also be an update to the design of the scheme.

Once planning permission is obtained, the next stages are the detailed design of the road, and obtaining compulsory purchase powers for the land required for construction. Our current expectation is that construction of the road could start in July 2025 with opening in July 2027. However, this will be dependent on whether objections are received to the Compulsory Purchase Orders and whether it is necessary to hold a public inquiry.

July 2023

There are key stages which need to be followed before a major new road can be built. All are dependent on deciding the road route and developing a preliminary engineering design:

obtaining planning permission - including preparing Environmental Statement with extensive environmental surveys, analysis and proposals for mitigating the impacts of building the road
purchasing the land for the road - ideally by negotiation, but we can seek compulsory purchase powers once we have planning permission. If there are objections to the draft Compulsory Purchase Order, a public inquiry is held under a Government Inspector
getting funding - includes the preparation of business cases to demonstrate value for money, reasons for building the road, how a contractor will be procured and how the scheme will be managed

Previous work

When the former County Council re-started work on Isham Bypass in 2020, the key tasks to be undertaken were:

reviewing the design - considering current standards for new highway construction and construction on ground relict shear planes (a rare geological condition which means land has the potential to slip or slump when disturbed by construction)
submitting a new planning application - this was needed because it wasn't possible to start construction before the previous planning permission expired in June 2022, and the route of the bypass needed to be amended to link into the new roundabout which was being constructed for Symmetry Park. Because of the time since the last planning application, this involved undertaking new environmental surveys and analysis
consulting with the public - to confirm support for the road and amended design
preparing a new Compulsory Purchase Order - unless it was possible to acquire land by negotiation, as the previous Compulsory Purchase Order had expired some years ago
preparing a new business case - to obtain funding from the Department for Transport’s Major Road Network programme

Public consultation results

We had 164 responses in Summer 2022 with

62% of respondents continuing to be in favour of the bypass progressing
25% of respondents thought the bypass should not progress
13% were undecided.

Schedule

When we updated Isham Parish Council on progress in March 2023, we expected that the planning application for the bypass would be submitted in July 2023, with the Outline Business Case being submitted to the Department for Transport shortly afterwards.

The Outline Business Case remains on track to be submitted to the Department for Transport by the beginning of August. This is the second, and most extensive, of three Business Cases that must be submitted to obtain funding for a major road scheme. It presents:

strategic case - why the bypass is being built
economic case - an analysis of the economic costs and benefits of the bypass, and the value for money of the scheme
financial case - assesses the affordability of the scheme and how it will be funded
commercial case - presents the procurement strategy for constructing the scheme and how this ensures value for money through the approach to managing the risks of unexpected costs inherent in a large construction project
management case - assesses whether the governance process is in place to ensure the project can be effectively managed

Environmental Statement complications

The majority of work on the planning application has been completed but there have been complications with completing the Environmental Statement. This because of new requirements relating to the assessment of Biodiversity Net Gain under the Environment Act 2021. To fulfil these requirements, it may not be possible to submit the planning application until March 2024, although we are examining whether it will be possible to accelerate this.

We highlighted that the mitigation of environmental impacts was a risk when we reported to the Parish Council in March this year, and unhappily this issue has resulted in the need to undertake further surveys, analysis and designs of suitable mitigations.

Biodiversity Net Gain

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) is the process of leaving the environment in a better state following development. It requires the developer to improve the natural environment compared to its condition before the development began.

BNG has been embedded in UK legislation under the Environment Act 2021, and all planning permissions granted from November 2023 must include its assessment within the decision-making process. It is a significant requirement aimed at protecting our natural environment.

Risk

BNG is a new requirement, and the Government’s guidance on how it should be assessed has only been published in recent months. Technical experts across the country are now learning how to implement the new regulations.

Mitigation the impact to natural habitats

BNG deals with both land and water habitats that could be impacted. Mitigating the land impacts of the bypass is easier to achieve, because the scheme includes a significant amount of land required for earthworks (such as cuttings and embankments) where mitigation can be provided.

Mitigating impacts for water habitats is much more difficult because the bypass only crosses short sections of watercourses where we are creating culverts or extending existing pipes. We will not have other lengths of watercourse under our ownership where enhanced habitats can be created.

Therefore, we are working with nearby landowners and organisations such as the Nene Rivers Trust to see if they are willing to work with us to create new habitats.

Completion of the BNG

The first stage of the land-based BNG assessment has been completed. This has been used to inform the landscape design proposals to ensure that the habitats are replaced and enhanced with appropriate grass, tree and shrubbery species that are native to the Northamptonshire landscape and character.

The final landscape design will be assessed by BNG specialists to ensure that 10% net gain is delivered for land habitats.

The water-based BNG assessment is progressing, and our specialists were on site during May and June 2023 to assess the condition of watercourses located within, upstream and downstream of the proposed bypass.

The site surveys will identify suitability for enhancements for each watercourse. Enhancements could include re-meandering, embankment reprofiling or compensatory planting of riverbank habitats.

We're continuing this work to create an indicative BNG design along with any assessment reports submitted with the planning application, which the public will be able to view.

Next steps

Once the planning application has been submitted, the our Planning service will consult on the application. This is a separate and independent consultation to that which has already been undertaken by the Highways team to develop the proposals. Planning officers will prepare a report for the relevant Planning Committee who will determine whether planning permission should be granted.

Assuming planning permission is granted, and further funding obtained, we will publish a Compulsory Purchase Order to acquire the land for the scheme to support negotiations with landowners. If there are objections to the Compulsory Purchase Order, the Government will appoint an Inspector who will hold a public inquiry.

While all this is happening, the detailed designs for the bypass will be developed, so that once the Compulsory Purchase Order is confirmed, a tender price for the scheme can be sought from contractors.

Subject to final approval of funding from the Department for Transport following submission of the Full Business Case, and a decision by us to award the construction contract, it is currently forecast that construction of the bypass would begin in Spring 2026, with the new road opening in in Winter 2027/8.

January 2024

Government announces that Isham Bypass will be fully funded

On 4 October 2023, the Government announced that the A509 Isham Bypass is one of number of road schemes that will be funded in full. This is welcome news as it means that we no longer need to find match-funding for the construction of the scheme. However, the funding is still not guaranteed.

Receiving the funding is still dependent on the Department for Transport’s assessment of various business cases, which we need to develop and submit. The scheme is also dependent on obtaining planning permission and the necessary land.

Business case and planning submission now June 2024

The Outline Business Case had almost reached the point of being ready for submission to the Department for Transport when they requested that the traffic modelling should be updated to reflect their most recent traffic forecasting assumptions reflecting the impact of the Covid pandemic on traffic growth.

We have also taken the opportunity to incorporate changes from a major update to Department for Transport's Transport Analysis Guidance published in November 2023 to ensure the business case complies with the Government’s latest requirements. The updated traffic modelling information will also inform the planning application.

This additional modelling creates an additional cost to the Council. Additional budget is also necessary so that we can respond to technical queries raised by the Department for Transport in reviewing the Outline Business Case and the Council’s planning officers in reviewing the planning application.

Raising of queries during these phases is common in such circumstances and the budget prepares for this eventually. In December, we agreed to provide an additional £790,000 to fund these elements of the project.

This further significant financial commitment demonstrates our continued commitment to progress the scheme and to overcome the challenges of securing funding from the Department for Transport for its construction.

As a result of this additional traffic modelling, the Outline Business Case and the planning application are now programmed for submission in June 2024.

The Department for Transport will then review the Outline Business Case, seek any clarifications from the Council and determine whether the scheme is eligible for further funding.

While Council officers have approached the Department for Transport for clarification as to how long their review of the business case will take, it is not possible for them to give a definitive answer.

Bio-diversity Net Gain progress

In line with the requirements of the Environment Act 2021, the project team have concluded the assessment of both the terrestrial (land-based) and aquatic (water-based) habitats that may be impacted by the scheme. Proposals have been drawn up to show how the required 10% net gain can be delivered.

As explained in the last newsletter, it is not possible to offset the aquatic impacts of the bypass within the boundaries of the scheme. This is because we will not have other lengths of watercourse within the scheme boundary where enhanced habitats can be created.

Discussions are therefore continuing with nearby landowners and organisations such as the Nene Rivers Trust to see if they are willing to work with us to create new habitats outside of the scheme boundary.

Walking and cycling improvements

As part of the public consultation in summer 2022 we sought ideas for how active travel (walking and cycling) improvements could be made on the existing A509 through the village to make it easier for people to walk and cycle once the bypass is open for traffic.

Using the feedback from the consultation, initial proposals were drawn up and then refined following discussions with the Council’s officers responsible for walking and cycling and the Government advisory body, Active Travel England.

The proposed design includes narrowing the road to facilitate pedestrian movements from the existing Public Rights of Way and to make the route less attractive to traffic.

The proposals will form part of the planning application package, but the intention is that they will only be implemented once the bypass is open for traffic, in order to avoid unnecessary disruption to existing traffic flows.

Next steps

Once the Outline Business Case has been submitted, the Department for Transport will assess it to determine whether it meets their requirements and decide whether they will provide funding towards the next stage of scheme development, which will include the development of the Final Business Case, as required by the Department for Transport.

Once the planning application has been submitted, our planning service will consult on the application.

This is a separate and independent consultation to that which has already been undertaken by the highways team to develop the proposals. Planning officers will prepare a report for the relevant planning committee who will determine whether planning permission should be granted.

If planning permission is granted, and further funding obtained from the Department for Transport, we will publish a Compulsory Purchase Order to acquire the land for the scheme to support negotiations with landowners. The intention is that the Order will be published within a month of planning permission being obtained.

If there are objections to the Compulsory Purchase Order, the Government will appoint an Inspector who will hold a public inquiry, and then the Inspector will report to the Secretary of State who will make the decision.

If the Department for Transport agree to fund the scheme and the project progresses as expected, it is currently forecast that construction of the bypass would begin in Summer 2026, with the new road opening in Summer 2028.

Subject to timely receipt of the various approvals, and no further changes in process / requirements, the summary programme is: