Tuesday, November 15, 2016

News: Rotherham HS2 safeguarding maps published

A decision on the route of HS2 through South Yorkshire has been delayed but safeguarding maps have been published showing the land and property affected by the proposals announced earlier in the year.

The South Yorkshire HS2 station location was initially chosen as Meadowhall but a new option announced in July proposes that HS2 services between London and Sheffield would take a spur off the high speed line and travel directly to the existing Sheffield Midland station using the existing railway line.

A city centre station solution for Sheffield high speed services would allow the main HS2 line to be built east of the previously proposed route, following the M1 and M18 through Rotherham before heading through the Dearne Valley.

The maps show the "safeguarding zone" that HS2 Ltd considers to offer "a balance between the need to protect land and property that may be needed for construction and operational purposes, and the legitimate rights of landowners not to have their right to develop infringed unnecessarily."

Safeguarding triggers statutory blight processes that will provide eligible landowners, within the safeguarded area, access to compensation on compulsory purchase terms ahead of compulsory purchase powers being in place.

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Entering the borough to the South, the route runs west of Woodhall Services by the M1 and skims the motorway at Wales. Passing underneath School Road, properties on Cherry Tree Road and others are in the safeguarding zone. Due to the proximity of the existing bridge over the M1, a longer replacement bridge over the railway corridor and the M1 may be required.

Heading North and crossing the railway line at Waleswood, Nickerwood Farm is in the centre of the safeguarding zone as the route heads over Aston Ponds on a 170m long viaduct. Crossing the A57 Aston Bypass, properties on Worksop Road, including Parklands Equestrian Centre, are within the zone. A 430m viaduct over a tributary of Pigeon Brook and the A57 would be needed and the A57 would be realigned to pass under the viaduct. The B6067 (Worksop Road) would also be realigned to pass under HS2.

Through fields and straight through the large wind farm at Ulley, the route will need to cross the M1 and switch to follow the M18 at Brampton. The route would run on embankment to cross the M1/M18 junction carriageways on viaducts. The engineering report adds that this section would cross areas affected by shallow coal mining.

Running directly west of the M18, the zone passes Morthern Road and covers part of Slacks Farm as it heads to Bramley. The B6060 (Morthern Road) would need to be raised significantly above its existing level, crossing HS2 and the M18 on a new bridge.

At Bramley the line would run in a cutting up to 11m deep with retaining walls used to minimise the footprint of the route.

The safeguarding zone at Bramley (pictured) includes properties at the bottom of the Broadlands Estate and commercial properties including the NHS at Oak House, Bannatyne's Health Club and the Ibis Hotel.

Going under the M18 junction at Bawtry Road, the route curves northwards through fields near to Ravenfield and Firsby and crosses Doncaster Road between Hooton Roberts and Conisborough.

A large viaduct would be needed at Denaby Main and over the Dearne floodplain as the route heads North West on to Leeds, joining back to the original proposed route before the M62 at Normanton.

HS2 Ltd admits in its latest consultation that: "A number of issues have been raised in relation to community and environmental impacts, for example in Wales, Aston, Bramley, Mexborough, Barnburgh and Crofton. We are conscious of the impacts in these areas. HS2 Ltd will work closely with local communities to understand how such impacts might be reduced or minimised, for example through the design of the route, its vertical profile, noise mitigation, landscaping and visual screening such as earthworks and tree planting."

HS2 Ltd website

Images: HS2


1 comment:

  1. So this what Quisling calls "consultation" - er, ere's the plans, take it or leave it!

    ReplyDelete