A new £16 million link road has opened in Worcestershire.
The new road provides a vital link to the strategic highway network from the A451 Stourport Road through to the A442 Worcester Road. The scheme includes the construction of a bridge across the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal and River Stour. The bridge has been designed to be sympathetic to the visual setting of the canal corridor, which is a designated conservation area.
Hoobrook Link Road is situated within the South Kidderminster Enterprise Park, which is one of the county’s four key employment sites also known as ‘game changer sites’. The new road will improve accessibility to this park and the surrounding areas. It will also facilitate the regeneration of the existing Hoobrook Industrial Estate and unlock the development potential of phase two of the former British Sugar site.
Cllr Ken Pollock, Worcestershire County Council cabinet member for economy, skills & infrastructure, said: "The new link road will reduce existing traffic congestion in the area, which we know is a barrier to economic growth. It will also enhance the economic potential of the wider Wyre Forest area by making it more accessible to existing businesses and more attractive to new employers."
The £16m scheme has received funding from several sources, including the Department for Transport, the Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership through the Worcestershire Growth Deal, the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership and Worcestershire County Council.
Worcestershire County Council's Planning and Regulatory Committee approved plans for Phase Two of the Hoobrook Link Road development in February 2014. The scheme was developed in consultation with Wyre Forest District Council and work began in May 2015.
Cllr Marcus Hart, leader for Wyre Forest District Council, added: "The completion of the link road is great news for the local area and will contribute to the continued regeneration of the Wyre Forest district. The road has also provided access to land which has enabled the construction of the recently opened leisure centre and a number of new homes."
