Support for relief road to ease town traffic

Market town residents have spoken about how their lives have been blighted by traffic, as councillors backed plans to explore the building of a relief road.

Fenland District Council said it would look at ways to make a case for a new road in Whittlesey, near Peterborough, following concerns over increased journeys by lorries on the A605.

One resident, Michael Gibbs, 76, told the BBC that somebody needed to "get a grip" on traffic in and around the town.

The authority said it would look at sourcing £220,000 to make a case for the project, following approval by councillors on Monday.

The relief road would look to reduce congestion in Whittlesey by giving vehicles an alternative to travelling through the town centre.

Resident Mr Gibbs said a 15-minute car journey could sometimes take him 45 minutes, which he called "ridiculous".

"The problem is if you've got an appointment in Peterborough, you don't really know how long it'll take you to get there," he said.

Brian and Jayne Brian-Platt, aged 60 and 59, live in nearby Thorney and welcomed the idea of a relief road.

"We're new to the area and we've noticed how dirty our car gets when we're up and down the High Street to Whittlesey," said Mrs Brian-Platt.

"The heavy vehicles, they just bound along the road so fast."

Mr Brian-Platt said lorry traffic on the roads in Fenland was "unbelievable".

He believed a road "especially made for the heavy traffic" would be a "good idea".

Dee Laws, the Conservative councillor for Whittlesey North West, told councillors on Monday she was "probably a little biased" due to being based in the town, but thought the project was "essential to move forward".

"Increase in traffic is happening daily, especially HGVs," she said.

"If you want growth in the economy to actually open up Fenland, you need to improve the road structure between east and west."

It is thought any relief road would run south of the A605 but not bypass Whittlesey entirely.

In a report, the district council said the road was "currently unfunded" but congestion was a problem in the growing town.

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