Cumbria County Council aims to award the contract for the building of the 8km Southern Link Road road in March 2023.
Work on the Carlisle Southern Link Road, which the council estimates will cost around £150m, was originally set to begin this spring. The rising cost of materials, issues with supply chains and rising energy costs led the council to postpone the process.
The first phase of the link road has been completed by Morgan Sindall Infrastructure. Morgan Sindall did not secure the contract for the building of the road because the company’s bid came in over budget.
The increasing cost of the road has led the council to seek more funding from Homes England’s Housing Infrastructure Fund. Homes England has already warded the project £134m, reports Place North West.
The council is inviting businesses to tender for the project starting in September. Work will begin on the road once the additional funding has been secured.
The Carlisle Southern Link Road scheme includes connecting Junction 42 of the M6 with the A595, new roundabouts and several bridges. The goal is for the road to better connect Carlisle and the future 10,000-home St Cuthbert’s Garden Village.
Cumbria County Cllr Keith Little, the cabinet member for highways and transport, said: “This is an exciting scheme which will link roads and vastly improve east to west connectivity as well as unlocking the delivery of St Cuthbert’s Garden Village, a Carlisle City Council scheme, which aims to deliver 10,000 new homes, infrastructure and employment to Carlisle and the wider county.”
Elsewhere in Cumbria, work has begun on another roadworks endeavour. Story Contracting has commenced construction of the £3.6m A595 strategic improvement project.
This project involves improving the Bothel and Torpenhow junction by installing right turn lanes onto School Lane and a new road to Torpenhow – as well as making the current road to Torpenhow an active travel route.
