Mottram bypass going to court!

The controversial ‘Mottram bypass’, a new dual-carriageway designed to tackle congestion between Manchester and Sheffield, is in the news again, with the High Court hearing scheduled for early October.

Part of the government’s ‘Trans Pennine Upgrade Programme’, the proposed A57 Link Roads will cut across the valuable Manchester Green Belt and increase traffic through a National Park. Our friends at CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire, concerned at the implications for our Green Belt, climate and the impact on the Peak National Park, filed an with the High Court application seeking permission for a judicial review of the road approval in December 2022.

In March 2023, the High Court ordered the permission decision to be ‘rolled up’ with a substantive hearing. This means that instead of permission being decided on paper, the charity will benefit from presenting the case before a Judge at a substantive two-day hearing.

This challenge is most timely. Recently, the UK’s statutory climate change advisors and the House of Commons Transport Committee told the government to stop building roads that generate more traffic and climate emissions – as the Mottram bypass would. Instead, it should review its current road programme and focus on improving existing roads.

CPRE Peak District and South Yorkshire’s ‘Low Carbon Travel’ plans for Glossopdale and Longdendale, published in September 2022, detail a sustainable and viable alternative to the A57 Link Roads scheme, addressing all the issues by removing through traffic of heavy lorries, improving travel for bus users, walkers, wheelers and cyclists, and reducing air pollution.

To learn more and support the legal action, visit the Stop Mottram Bypass Wrecking Climate and Green Belt CrowdJustice page.