News: Rotherham Council objects to AMRC's expansion in Sheffield
Rotherham Council is objecting to a multimillion pound extension to the University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) in Sheffield because the application contains out of date information about buses.
A partner in the HVM Catapult (the government's strategic initiative that aims to revitalise the manufacturing industry), the AMRC focuses on advanced machining and materials research for aerospace and other high-value manufacturing sectors. It is a partnership between industry and academia, which has become a model for research centres worldwide.
Having launched on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham in 2003, the centre outgrew the site of the former Orgreave coking works and expanded over the Parkway onto the site of the former Sheffield airport, developing its own "Innovation District" with buildings such as Factory 2050, which opened in 2015.
The latest application for the Sheffield Business Park location is for the "Factory 2050 Mark III Building" - a 29,600 sq ft L-shaped structure to house a workshop that comes at the same time as the centre announced an £80m boost to composites research and development for aerostructure manufacturing in the UK that will see a new research facility built in South Yorkshire that has aerospace giant Boeing as its first major research partner.
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The AMRC application, supported by agents, DLP Planning, also includes a detailed travel plan and transport assessment but Rotherham Council planners have labelled it "fundamentally flawed."
In its response to the application, Rotherham Council states: "The travel plan accompanying the application is fundamentally flawed in that it quotes a level of bus service provision that is many years out of date. The current level of public transport available is very restricted, both in terms of areas served and the frequency and times of operation.
"This suggests that the number of car trips to the site will exceed those stated in the original transport assessment. Given the sensitive nature of the local road network and the SRN [strategic road network] junction at M1 J33, the actions in the travel plan should be revisited to bring it up to date.
"As such Rotherham Council wishes to object to the application currently."
One of the main bus services featured in the applicant's documents is the A1 service that linked Sheffield Business Park, as well as the Waverley development in Rotherham, to Meadowhall.
Previously run by Powell's before the bus operator closed last year, the A1 route was taken on by Cawthornes Travel before it was withdrawn completely in July 2023.
Having to make cuts to services and incentives, South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard recently called the Government’s funding for South Yorkshire’s buses “completely unacceptable."
Funding is under pressure against the backdrop of reduced levels of passenger demand and reducing levels of post-Covid support grants from central Government. South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) has been unable to protect all non-commercially viable bus services that bus operators are withdrawing from the network and all concessionary fares at present levels.
AMRC website
Images: AMRC
A partner in the HVM Catapult (the government's strategic initiative that aims to revitalise the manufacturing industry), the AMRC focuses on advanced machining and materials research for aerospace and other high-value manufacturing sectors. It is a partnership between industry and academia, which has become a model for research centres worldwide.
Having launched on the Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) in Rotherham in 2003, the centre outgrew the site of the former Orgreave coking works and expanded over the Parkway onto the site of the former Sheffield airport, developing its own "Innovation District" with buildings such as Factory 2050, which opened in 2015.
The latest application for the Sheffield Business Park location is for the "Factory 2050 Mark III Building" - a 29,600 sq ft L-shaped structure to house a workshop that comes at the same time as the centre announced an £80m boost to composites research and development for aerostructure manufacturing in the UK that will see a new research facility built in South Yorkshire that has aerospace giant Boeing as its first major research partner.
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The AMRC application, supported by agents, DLP Planning, also includes a detailed travel plan and transport assessment but Rotherham Council planners have labelled it "fundamentally flawed."
In its response to the application, Rotherham Council states: "The travel plan accompanying the application is fundamentally flawed in that it quotes a level of bus service provision that is many years out of date. The current level of public transport available is very restricted, both in terms of areas served and the frequency and times of operation.
"This suggests that the number of car trips to the site will exceed those stated in the original transport assessment. Given the sensitive nature of the local road network and the SRN [strategic road network] junction at M1 J33, the actions in the travel plan should be revisited to bring it up to date.
"As such Rotherham Council wishes to object to the application currently."
One of the main bus services featured in the applicant's documents is the A1 service that linked Sheffield Business Park, as well as the Waverley development in Rotherham, to Meadowhall.
Previously run by Powell's before the bus operator closed last year, the A1 route was taken on by Cawthornes Travel before it was withdrawn completely in July 2023.
Having to make cuts to services and incentives, South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard recently called the Government’s funding for South Yorkshire’s buses “completely unacceptable."
Funding is under pressure against the backdrop of reduced levels of passenger demand and reducing levels of post-Covid support grants from central Government. South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) has been unable to protect all non-commercially viable bus services that bus operators are withdrawing from the network and all concessionary fares at present levels.
AMRC website
Images: AMRC
22 comments:
Indeed it's true, our work had an apprentice and the buses recently have got fewer and far between
Coppard has been given millions to protect the bus network and none of it has been spent wisely.
That's interesting. Can you explain?
The arrogance of expecting an explanation sums you up Jez
Why should anyone feel the need to explain anything to you Jez?
I would be interested to know what millions were awarded and how this was spent - Can you point me to the source of this?
Since when has admitting lack of knowledge and requesting elaboration on a post been arrogance? Your personal dislike for me is seriously clouding whatever morsel of judgement you possess. If you cannot control your emotions I suggest you restrict your activities to your dating sites.
Can't see what your problem is with Jez on this.It seems like a reasonable request for more information and at least his posts are amusing.
Jez,
Why are you always confrontational? People have different opinions and they don’t have to explain anything to you, so do everyone a favor and stop posting, since you’ve started sticking your oar in it seems you feel the need to comment and confront about everyone else’s comments!
Be a good chap and disappear please.
Some bizarre responses to reasonable request from Jez.
And I'm the confrontational one? If people don't want their opinions challenged or questioned they shouldn't post them on discussion forums. I sympathise with your feelings of insecurity, but you do yourself no favours by airing them publicly. Also if you gave yourself a tag I could ignore your posts and spare your feelings.
I bet you are Jez
Give it a rest mate.You're embarrassing yourself.
Nothing embarrassing Jez
There was a comment earlier "Coppard has been given millions to protect the bus network and none of it has been spent wisely" can someone please point me to the articles/website where this is mentioned as it's not something I was aware of?
Good luck with that Martin. When I made a similar request it unleashed a Troll
Ask not for whom the bell tolls
Do you mean "for whom the troll bells"?
A troll being trolled, oh the irony!
A key aspect of trolling is that it is usually undertaken under the cover of anonymity. I'm Jez and you are.... well, anonymous.
And yet Rotherham council are happy for Harworth to sell land to facilitate the building of more and more houses just the other side of the Parkway with the same poor bus services in situ and allowed Harworth to drop the car share club from its original application for the site
Pure hypocrisy
If you read the article the council are not objecting on the basis of the bus service being unavailable, they are objecting based on the out of date bus information makes the estimate on increased car journeys out of date. The requirement is for the application to be resubmitted with the correct car estimate. No hypocrisy there.
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