Tyneside councils have hailed the Government’s decision this week to give the go-ahead for a new river crossing designed to relieve congestion and spur development.
The £140M immersed tunnel, to be built with private finance and re-paid by tolls, will dual the adjacent two-lane A19 crossing between Jarrow and East Howdon.
Tyne and Wear passenger transport authority, promoter of the New Tyne Crossing, said it had long-been needed to reduce congestion and pollution at the Tyne Tunnel. It would also support regeneration along the A19 corridor, allow new opportunities for public transport, and improve safety, said PTA chairman Cllr David Wood.
The planning inspector accepted that three of those objectives would be met, but questioned whether the opportunity for public transport ‘would be converted into reality’. At best, a modal shift to buses of 10% was likely, but reliability would improve.
The inspector agreed with environmentalists that argued the tunnel addressed a predominantly local problem and would promote car-dependent development, against national policy. But the scheme was in line with regional and local planning and transport policies, and new jobs and development would be jeopardised ‘as he saw no realistic prospect of a very large modal shift to public and other, more sustainable, forms of transport’.
Transport secretary Alistair Darling endorsed his recommendation, which followed agreement with statutory objectors during the inquiry (Surveyor, 1 May 2003). The concessionaire’s operations will be subject to intense monitoring of conditions in the salmon river and restrictions on dredging.
Darling concluded that local and regional policies had taken national policy into account properly, and the additional capacity was needed to tackle congestion.He also restricted the PTA’s powers to increase or vary tolls and use revenue for other purposes, including further crossings.
A concessionaire will be appointed next year to finance, design, and construct the new tunnel, and operate both crossings.
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