Hartlepool council wins £600,000 backing toward £18m bypass at Elwick

Plans to create a new £18million bypass of Elwick village are progressing after project chiefs secured £600,000.
The Southerly Elwick junction with the A19 looking North.The Southerly Elwick junction with the A19 looking North.
The Southerly Elwick junction with the A19 looking North.

The bypass and new grade separation junction is one of the key features of Hartlepool Borough Council’s new Local Plan development blueprint.

It aims to divert traffic from new developments at High Tunstall from going through the village which already experiences high volumes of vehicles passing through to access the A19.

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Council officers have reported that an application for a £600,000 loan from the Growing Places Fund has been successful.

It is to enable a full business case for the bypass to be prepared and unlock the rest of the funding, including drawing up designs and buying any land.

A report of Denise Ogden, Hartlepool council’s director of regeneration and neighbourhoods, said: “The need for this highways improvement has become apparent over recent years as both the A689 and the A179 have continued to become more and more congested.

“Through implementing these infrastructure improvements many benefits will be experienced including reduced congestion on other roads, increased safety in Elwick village and increased safety on the A19 at the Elwick junctions.”

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The road is planned to bypass the village from a new junction to the north of the village.

Plans have been lodged for a large development including 1,200 new homes on land off Elwick Road at High Tunstall.

Work is underway on the new 81-home Elwick Rise development in the same area and there are plans for a further 220 between land off Elwick Road and Worset Lane.

Members of the council’s Finance and Policy Committee gave officers approval to apply for the bypass funding.

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Possible sources include the £100 million Highways England Growth and Housing Fund and the £730 million Growing Places Fund for key infrastructure projects.

The council says the funding will be in the form of a loan and is expected to be paid back through developer contributions.