Monday, May 16, 2016

News: £4m of funding found for BRT shortfall

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The Sheffield City Region Combined Authority has pledged a further £4m of funding to ensure that a delayed and over budget transport scheme can be completed.

In 2014, the £34.3m Sheffield to Rotherham Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) scheme was facing the prospect of a 12 month delay and a near £8m cost increase due to "significant ground condition issues" at Tinsley.

The Northern route of the scheme aims to improve the links between Rotherham and Sheffield passing Meadowhall, the Lower Don Valley and Templeborough. It aims help to foster economic growth along the corridor by helping people access jobs and opportunities.

The main feature is a £20m, alternative, all transport route which bypasses the congested M1 junction 34 South by providing a new section of highway beneath the Tinsley Viaduct and is currently under construction.

Initially programmed to start running in September 2015, a high quality, limited stop bus service is to provide faster, more frequent connections through the Lower Don Valley, reducing the snarl ups which occur at the busy junction of the M1. It will also help unlock the redevelopment potential of the area, which is being restricted by the traffic problems on the present road system.

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Contractors, Carillion have been working on the Tinsley Link scheme and during the work, significant levels of asbestos was discovered, which had not been identified in surveys carried out before work began.

With Sheffield City Council leading on this part of the project, it was forced to obtain a £2.3m loan to cash flow the project until local building developments generate earnings through the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) to repay the loan.

Now a bid is being approved for a further £4.2m from the Sheffield City Region's Local Growth Fund with a key part of the bid being the inclusion of the remediation required to address land contaminants discovered on site.

The scheme is being delivered in partnership by South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE), Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council and Sheffield City Council.

Other funding has come via the European Union's European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Growing Places Fund from the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership, local developers such as British Land, and the South Yorkshire Local Transport Plan.

When bidding for funding, backers stated that it will help to unlock 4,000 jobs in the Lower Don Valley linked to schemes such as the River Don District, the Outokumpu site and areas of Templeborough. It includes areas benefiting from the Sheffield City Region Enterprise Zone.

The development is expected to generate an estimated £200m for the local economy each year, increase public transport patronage by 7,500 passengers per day, and reduce carbon emissions by 6,320 tonnes over 60 years.

In addition to the new road, new bus lanes and improvements, such as those proposed at Ickles Roundabout and the junction of Westgate and Main Street, will give buses priority and help reduce total journey times to 20 minutes. From the interchange in Rotherham, stops are proposed for Westgate in the town centre and Bradmarsh Way and Grange Lane at Templeborough.

SYPTE website

Images: SYTPTE

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