New city link road plans back on the table

Plans to build a new road to ease congestion near Norwich could be back on the table after initially being withdrawn because of concerns about its impact on bats.

The 3.9-mile (6.2-km) Norwich Western Link, connecting the Northern Distributor Road (NDR) to the A47, had been in the works for years before being scrapped in January.

Norfolk County Council admitted a dual carriageway or viaduct over the River Wensum was unlikely due to the eco-restrictions, but said a single carriageway could be an option.

Graham Plant, a Conservative cabinet member, said they hoped to work closely with Natural England to mitigate the risk of previous issues with protected bats.

Norfolk County Council had been seeking approval from the government to build the £274m Norwich Western Link, but last year the project's future was thrown into doubt after Natural England changed rules protecting rare Barbastelle bats that lived on the route of the proposed road.

James Marshall, Natural England's deputy director for Norfolk and Suffolk, said his organisation was "clear that development and nature can go hand in hand".

But he said Barbastelle bats were "incredibly rare" and that the proposed route "would destroy one of the largest remaining populations in the UK".

The county council is now considering whether a single carriageway option might solve congestion issues, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

It is also considering making minor improvements to the existing road network, public transport and improvements for walking and cycling and making changes to the existing B-road between Wood Lane and Lenwade.

Plant, the cabinet member for transport, said the council believed a new road was still the best solution to improve issues in villages west of Norwich.

"We have been, and are continuing to, implement some smaller-scale measures which may provide some relief to affected communities.

"However, a larger-scale intervention is still needed through our Norwich Western Link project in order to improve the situation significantly."

The council estimated it would cost £1.66m to appraise the various options, which would include a public consultation before being presented to cabinet members next summer.

The Department for Transport had agreed to contribute £960,000 toward the development costs.

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