Ashbourne by-pass “on the right road”

Plans to find a solution to Ashbourne’s long-standing traffic problems are “on the right road”, says Derbyshire County Council, following a meeting of senior Derbyshire delegates and the government’s transport secretary.

Last week, a delegation of the Council’s senior technical officers headed to Westminster to meet with the Secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling MP, together with former transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin − who is also MP for Derbyshire Dales.

They were there to raise the profile of the traffic issues facing the historic market town – a major visitor attraction and a gateway to the Peak District National Park – and to raise the possibility of a by-pass.

The Council says a key issue is that the A515 which cuts through the narrow, one-way road system of the town carries a substantial amount of visitor traffic and a large number of lorries carrying minerals from some of the county’s major quarries.

Cabinet member for highways, transport and infrastructure, councillor said: “We welcomed the opportunity for these high level discussions to speak with the minister. The meeting proved really positive.

“It provided us with an opportunity to stress the importance of finding a solution to Ashbourne’s traffic problems for the benefit of the local economy and environment and the important mineral industry around the town.”

Earlier this year, the Cabinet gave the green light for investigation work to be carried out into the possibility of a new Ashbourne by-pass. Options for other solutions to the town’s traffic problems, other than a by-pass, will also be considered.

Evidence into the feasibility of a by-pass is now being collected. This will then be used to put together a business case to identify potential solutions to the town’s congestion problems.

Local businesses and other stakeholders would then need to be consulted and funding for the project would also need to be secured.

Councillor Spencer added: “It is very early days and a lot of work still needs to be done before plans can be progressed. However, this has given us the opportunity to put the possibility of a by-pass for Ashbourne on the government’s radar and takes us a step closer to alleviating the town’s significant congestion issues.

“The minister has now pledged to formalise our discussions by writing to our local MP Patrick McLoughlin to outline possible funding options which may be available to fund either a by-pass or other solutions to ease the area’s traffic problems.”