The building of the long-awaited slip road to relieve congestion from traffic queuing to get into the Sort It centre and waste transfer station at Carsons Road in Mangotsfield has been delayed because of “legal difficulties”.
Back in 2019 South Gloucestershire Council stated its intention to create a slip road and also mooted the idea of closing the Cowhorn collection vehicle depot at Warmley and relocating it to Carsons Road.
The council said the relocation would not be assessed until after the completion of the slip road.
In October 2020 the council said its plans had moved a step closer with the purchase of 2.33 acres of land west of Carsons Road which would replace a small parcel of common land around the entrance to the Sort It Centre with a parcel of land almost three times the size to be designated as common land.
Four months later SUEZ Recycling & Recovery UK lodged a planning application for a single lane slip road and traffic islands at the intersection between Carsons Road Link and Carsons Road, using part of the existing verge. The plan was approved last June.
But at the meeting of the Staple Hill, Mangotsfield and New Cheltenham Community Engagement Forum on Tuesday, in response to a query from a local resident about what’s happening with the slip road, local councillor Kim Scudamore said: “I think there has been a bit of a hiccup in the plan. I think there are some legal difficulties which are still to be resolved. The programme does seem to have slipped back a bit.”
A spokesperson for South Gloucestershire Council told us: “Plans are in place to improve access at Mangotsfield Sort It Centre by creating a dedicated slip road to the site.
“As part of this scheme, we are working through legal aspects relating to land ownership before progressing with construction.
“We are planning to begin construction later this year and will provide updates when we have further information on timescales.”
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