Calls for funding commitment for M5 junction revamp
There are fears much-needed improvements planned for junction 9 of the M5 could be in peril as the Government slashes £700m from its roads fund to boost defence spending.
There are fears much-needed improvements planned for junction 9 of the M5 could be in peril as the Government slashes £700m from its roads fund to boost defence spending.
Gloucestershire County Council has been working on a project to provide a new junction 9a to the south of Tewkesbury and re-reroute a section of the A46 between the M5 and the Teddington Hands roundabout.
It is seen as a “traffic busting” scheme which will help solve long-standing issues and provide vital infrastructure to meet existing and future needs in the area while improving journey times.
The improvements, previously estimated in 2024 to cost between £740m and £930m, would also help with the creation of up to 25,000 homes at Tewkesbury Garden Communities.
The new junction would support jobs and investment by providing access to at least 100 hectares of employment land, with a focus on advanced manufacturing and defence.
And the project is seen as vital in improving connectivity along the Trans-Midlands Trade Corridor, a nationally important route which links the South West, Midlands and North East.
But Shire Hall chiefs are concerned about recent Government announcements on the need to focus funding on defence. And they are calling for a funding commitment from ministers for the major road project.
Liberal Democrat Councillor Julian Tooke, who is responsible for planning and infrastructure at the county council, said: “The Government has been very clear in its expectation that councils enable the building of more homes and has set ambitious targets. Housing has to come with improved infrastructure.
“The Government has spoken about the possible reallocation of funds to defence from infrastructure. We are very concerned that Gloucestershire’s need for improvements to junction 9 of the M5 and the A46 may get sacrificed.”
Vernon Smith, Reform UK’s councillor Tewkesbury West, said it would be a “betrayal” of the market town and “the whole of Gloucestershire” if the scheme does not get Government funding.
“Residents in Ashchurch have put up with gridlock, HGVs thundering past their front doors and unreliable journeys for over thirty years, and just as a solution is finally within reach, this Labour Government looks set to snatch it away,” he said.
“You cannot fund the nation’s defence by leaving our county’s most important road scheme to rot.
“The business case has been sitting on ministers’ desks gathering dust while our residents sit in traffic.
“Thousands of new homes are being forced on Tewkesbury without the infrastructure to support them; if junction 9 doesn’t happen, the garden town simply doesn’t work, and local people will pay the price every single day.”
The Department for Transport (DfT) will not comment on funding prospects for junction 9 at this stage.
The Government has confirmed an additional £15 billion for the Defence Investment Plan between 2026-27 and 2029-30.
And £60 billion more will be spent on defence over the next four years than if spending were maintained in line with plans set out in Spring Budget 2024.
Their Defence Investment Plan Funding explainer issued last month says departments have been asked to contribute 1p in every £1 of their capital budgets from this year.
And the DfT will be providing savings of up to £700m from its roads funding. The department will consult on reductions to the third road investment strategy and they could cancel the A38 Derby Junctions and A46 Newark bypass schemes, both of which are yet to enter contract and are not as far along as other road schemes.
They will also explore limited reductions to as yet uncommitted roads funding. The Government says it remains committed to protecting funding for local authorities to mend potholes and repair their roads, protecting investment in rail infrastructure, including Northern Powerhouse Rail, and the proposals will not impact bus or rail services.
By Carmelo Garcia, local democracy reporter for Gloucestershire. carmelo.garcia@reachplc.com
*The Raikes Journal is the only independent news outlet in Gloucestershire approved to use the copy of the BBC local government reporting service. Why? Only independent, credible journalistically-led platforms that meet the BBC’s high standards win that permission.