Be careful what you wish for... A453 widening may lead to worse problems

Be careful what you wish for... A453 widening may lead to worse problems WE'VE got our new A46. The highway will become a dual carriageway from Clifton to the M1, which is good in theory. All of which should prompt a general round of rejoicing, a service of thanksgiving at St Mary's, a ribbon-cutting by a regional TV news reader and the most rousing fanfare in the repertoire of the Band of the South Notts Hussars. Call me a party pooper, but, to coin the lyric, there may be trouble ahead. Now, following the 2009 public inquiry, we learn that the planning inspectorate has ruled on the route of the upgraded road. Even so, there will still be plenty of opportunity for slowing down traffic: the Crusader roundabout, for instance; the pedestrian crossings; the Green Lane and Village Road crossroads; the Nottingham Trent University junctions. Alas, we probably cannot do that now, so there's no point in suggesting an alternative route for the A453 - one that by-passes Clifton by sweeping over the Trent near Beeston Rylands and intersects with Clifton Boulevard near the fag factory. For decades it has provided a very narrow foundation for the slowest moving traffic north of the London orbital car park. Although the last General Election did away with such things, few who live to the south-west of Nottingham will forget the regional plan that may have put 5,000 new homes on Clifton Pastures. Indeed, in a worst-case scenario, Clifton Pastures could be the thin end of brick wedge running down the length of the A453, invading the only decent hilltop view in southern Nottinghamshire. Taken further, you wonder about the other side of the A453 and the threat to Barton-in-Fabis and Thrumpton. You know how it works at the moment. Notwithstanding the new Whitehall exhortation to concentrate first on what the planning fraternity likes to call "brownfield" sites, that green-belt land remains vulnerable. As I understand it the section of the A453 between a brand new roundabout at Mill Hill and the Farnborough Road junction, although not a dual carriageway, will be widened to four lanes. Nottingham must surely be the only top ten UK city whose principal access from London is via a highway of B-road quality. The presence of a wider A453 would strengthen any potential developer's hand in an environment in which local authorities will remain under pressure to find land for housing. In other words, and especially as the new A453 will observe the first law of road-widening and attract traffic rather than thin it out. Get stuck behind a 40-tonner or the East Midlands Airport charabanc and you might as well change down to second gear, retune to Classic FM and surrender another 1/2 an hour of your one and only life. Back in the Seventies somebody had a vision of creating a quick link from the M1 right into the heart of Nottingham. The other thing that worries me is that wider roads are arguments for yet more housing development. Be careful what you wish for... A453 widening may lead to worse problems Trade News selected by Local Linkup on 05/04/2012