A66 Northern Trans-Pennine project

Results updated 18 Jun 2020

Preferred Route Announcement

Following our public consultation in 2019 to improve the A66 between M6 junction 40 at Penrith and the A1(M) at Scotch Corner, we have chosen our preferred route for the A66 Northern Trans Pennine project which can be found in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure.

As a result of a rigorous selection process, we've reviewed and considered every response and comment you gave us and where appropriate, used this information to inform our initial proposals. Overall, the consultation demonstrated a high level of support for improving the A66 and we believe the route chosen presents the best opportunity to deliver the project objectives.

Response to public consultation

We held a public consultation between 16 May and 11 July 2019 where we presented our outline options for improving the A66. This included dualling the sections of single carriageway along the A66 between the M6 junction 40 and the A1(M) at Scotch Corner and improvement works for the Kemplay Bank roundabout at Penrith.

We held 21 events in local areas along the route during the consultation and engaged with key stakeholders, such as local authorities, parish councils, ward representatives, landowners, local residents and road users to seek their views. Since then, we have continued to engage with our customers and representatives at organisations such as the Environment Agency, Natural England and Historic England.

A total of 2333 people attended our exhibitions where we received 854 responses and overall, the public response to our proposals was overwhelmingly positive with 92.5% of respondents being in favour of dualling the remaining single carriageway sections of the A66.

More information about our options consultation can be found in our Options Consultation Report. 

The preferred route

We propose to upgrade seven sections of single carriageway to dual carriageway standard along the A66. We presented multiple options for five of these sections, and a single proposal for the remaining two. We also developed options for an underpass or overpass choice at Kemplay Bank roundabout. In total, we presented 15 different options for respondents to the consultation to comment on. The following outlines the preferred route for each of these sections which, in total, cover 18 miles of the current A66.

Kemplay Bank Roundabout preferred route: option A

Option A was selected because it has less environmental impact than an overpass. While noise levels are likely to increase with either option due to higher use of the improved junction, the underpass noise levels are likely to be lower. The underpass would also be less visible from the surrounding areas. The overpass option would also have required the purchase of a larger area of the local recreation grounds to the north of the roundabout. Our selected option was most popular with respondents to the consultation, with 358 respondents voting for an underpass. This equates to 80% of the people responding to this question. Please visit page 14 - 15 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Penrith to Temple Sowerby preferred route: option C

We have selected option C, the southern bypass for this section of the A66 because it will not require the demolition of the buildings in High Barn and the potential impact this would have on businesses. It is also further away from the hamlet of Lane End which will help to mitigate the noise impact on residents. This southern bypass option was also the most popular with respondents to the consultation with 64% (234) of respondents to this question voting in favour. Please visit page 16 - 17 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Temple Sowerby to Appleby – Kirkby Thore preferred route: option E

For this section of the A66, we have selected option E, the northern bypass. We’ve selected this option as it provides the opportunity to reduce traffic, including HGVs, from the village of Kirkby Thore. This option also reduces the amount of buildings we need to demolish to improve this section of the A66. It will also not impact on the wildlife corridor on the disused railway line. The southern option also had a greater negative impact on biodiversity and the flood plain. Option E was also the most popular with respondents at consultation with 66% (314) of respondents voting in favour of this option. While this route represents a longer journey time of the two options and may be more expensive, it has reduced environmental impacts while still delivering the required improvements. Please visit page 18 - 19 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Temple Sowerby to Appleby – Crackenthorpe preferred route: option H

We have selected option H, the northern bypass furthest away from Crackenthorpe, for this section of the A66. Option H is more resilient as there are diversions available for when accidents happen. It will also avoid an area of potential landslips and the remedial works which may be required to mitigate this issue. Option G would potentially have had an impact on the River Eden and its floodplains, while Option H will be routed away from nearby watercourses and floodplains. Our chosen option allows for improved access to Appleby by utilising the ‘old’ section of road and provides better opportunities for crossing facilities for walkers, cyclists and equestrians. Option H also has less impact on landowners as it follows a natural feature which marks the boundary of many properties. Option H was the most popular at consultation with 72% (286) of the respondents to this question opting for the bypass furthest away from Crackenthorpe. This equates to 286 respondents. Please visit page 20 - 21 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Appleby to Brough preferred route: option I

As only one route was proposed for this section, option I will be taken forward to the design phase. Almost 75% of the respondents to this question agreed that option I was a good solution to issues in this section. A further 16% did not express an opinion. Please visit page 22 - 23 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Bowes Bypass preferred route: option J

As only one option was proposed for this section, option J will be taken forward to the design phase. 76% of the respondents to this question agreed that option J was a good solution to issues in this section. A further 21% did not express an opinion. Please visit page 24 - 25 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Cross Lanes to Rokeby preferred route: option K

For this section of the A66, we have selected option K, the southern bypass. We selected option K because it does not impact on the setting of St Mary’s church or require the demolition of the Old Rectory. The section of the A66 would also allow HGVs to easily travel in both directions on the A66 via the new all movement junction. Option K was the most popular with respondents at consultation with 176 respondents to this question voting in favour of the southern bypass. This equates to 56% of respondents. Please visit page 26 - 27 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

Stephen Bank to Carkin Moor preferred route: option N

We have chosen option N, the northern bypass to improve this section of the A66. We selected option N because this route maintained the line of the A66 through the scheduled monument at Carkin Moor. Option N also presented better options for utilising the detrunked section of the A66 to allow safe and easy access to local villages and facilities.

We sought advice from Historic England around the options in this area due to the importance of the scheduled monument. Their view was that the known impact of carefully widening the road through the monument was preferable to the impacts on potentially unknown archaeological assets of constructing a new road to the south. The northern bypass option N was the most popular at consultation with 179 people voting in favour of this option. This represents 51% of the respondents to this question. Please visit page 28 - 29 in our Preferred Route Announcement brochure for more information.

To learn more about our preferred route, please see the documents below. For more information on the development of the project and to subscribe to our web alerts, please visit: https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/a66-northern-trans-pennine/.

What happens next

Now we have announced our preferred route, we will carry out further surveys and investigations to help us design the project in more detail. These surveys and investigations will also be vital in providing information for our assessments which will underpin our future consultations and our subsequent Development Consent Order application (see below animation). As part of this work, you may notice some activity in the area. We plan to consult on the design of the road and the junctions at a later date giving you a further opportunity to share your views with us. In the meantime, we will continue to engage with our stakeholders and the local community to help us refine the design before inviting the public to submit further feedback. Throughout the process we will keep listening and talking to everyone with an interest in the project. There will also be regular updates and information on our project webpage: highwaysengland.co.uk/a66- northern-trans-pennine/.

Project timeline

Following on from our Preferred Route Announcement, we will now plan to carry out a further public consultation for you to express your views on the design of the project in advance of our application for a Development Consent Order to authorise construction of the project.

Application for a Development Consent Order

This project is classed as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) under the Planning Act 2008. This means that we are required to make an application for a Development Consent Order to obtain permission to construct the project. The timeline shows the different stages in this process. Following a further consultation on the design, we will prepare an application for a Development Consent Order that will include an Environmental Impact Assessment. The application will be made to the Planning Inspectorate, who will examine the application. Following the examination, the Examining Authority will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State for Transport, who will decide whether the project will go ahead.

 

 

Find out more about the Development Consent Order process on the Planning Inspectorate’s website at: http://infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk

Contact us 

If you need to discuss our preferred route please contact us using one of the following methods below:

Website: https://highwaysengland.co.uk/projects/a66-northern-trans-pennine/

Email: A66NTP@highwaysengland.co.uk

Post: FAO A66 NTP, Highways England, 3 Piccadilly Place, Manchester, M1 3BN

 

Files:

• A66 Preferred Route Announcement Brochure, 3.2 MB (PDF document)
• A66 Preferred Route Map, 203.8 KB (PDF document)
• A66 Factsheet, 177.8 KB (PDF document)
• Highways England Development Consent Order Leaflet, 241.1 KB (PDF document)
• A66 Approach to Public Consultation, 2.4 MB (PDF document)
• A66 Options Consultation Report, 5.2 MB (PDF document)