Monday, June 17, 2024

News: Budget increases again for delayed Rotherham link road

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Work has been delayed on a £12m transport scheme that aims to improve the area around Parkgate Shopping in Rotherham.

Contractors Tilbury Douglas began work on the Parkgate link road and Park & Ride scheme at the start of 2023 with a completion date of February 2024.

£11.52m is required from the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (SYMCA) Transforming Cities Fund towards project costs of £12.86m. £7m is for the new access route and £3.4m for a new Park & Ride facility. £1.7m is needed for upgrades to Taylor's Lane roundabout nearby - a separate part of the scheme.

Now, newly published documents from SYMCA show that the programme has been extended to Autumn 2024 with the cost of the road and Park & Ride facility now taking more of the budget.

Tilbury Douglas' appointment was based on a competitive tender which was completed in December 2021 on a fixed price basis, held until April 2022. The contract was worth £8,420,930 but the planning application wasn’t submitted until August 2022 and the preferred contractor "could not hold their tendered price which was increased to £9,293,987.05."

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SYMCA said that the budget increase was reviewed at the time and "considered to be appropriate and consistent with cost increases across the industry."

The report adds: "During the course of the works various issues with earthworks, drainage, design changes and statutory undertakers’ diversions have occurred and agreed programme has been extended to Autumn 2024. These changes and programme extension has resulted in an increase in the current expected contract out-turn at £11.478m."

Finding a new contractor to finish the job was discounted due to contractual and continuity issues.

It is not clear what effect the cost increases will have on the £1.7m needed for upgrades to Taylor's Lane roundabout.

The new 800 metre road between Aldwarke Lane and both Stonerow Way and Stadium Way is set to provide a second access route to Parkgate Shopping, via a roundabout between the two railway bridges. It is designed to relieve existing congestion on the A633 around Parkgate Shopping and improve traffic flow and bus journey times on the corridor and wider road network.

In addition to improving the vehicular, walking and cycling infrastructure, also included in the scheme is a new 300-space Park & Ride facility for the Parkgate Tram Train terminus, including electric vehicle bays.

Images: Google Maps

6 comments:

Anonymous,  June 17, 2024 at 1:01 PM  

You really have to be joking? Further delays and no doubt yet more delays on Aldwarke!
Also, why the hell was the opportunity not taken to use the existing subway (under the railway line) that would have given a much shorter cycle & pedestrian route from the Retail World area (including Supertram) to Waddington Way. That could have reduced the car usage needed to reach the premises on the industrial estate.

Anonymous,  June 17, 2024 at 8:18 PM  

A little angry there friend. Are you ok?

Ziggy,  June 18, 2024 at 12:58 PM  

So they entered into a contract that they knew wasn't fixed price and didn't think about the consequences until it hit them. But yet they had a chance to get it done at a fixed price but delayed putting in the application that they knew they needed from the start of conception (many years).

Anonymous,  June 18, 2024 at 5:30 PM  

Better call Saul

Anonymous,  June 23, 2024 at 11:20 AM  

That's Rotherham for you.Didnt the same thing happen with Snail Hill Pocket Park?

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