Hundreds more homes to be built before Walton bridge and bypass slammed as 'absolute joke' by residents

The single-track Bailey Bridge, built in 1947, in Station Lane, Walton-on-Trent, would be replaced by the new bridge

Derbyshire residents yelled “what an absolute joke” after councillors approved plans for a developer to build more houses before making good on a promised bridge and bypass. At a South Derbyshire District Council meeting last night (Tuesday, February 6), the authority’s planning committee approved plans from Countryside Partnerships to build up to 785 homes before it must provide the long-awaited Walton bridge and bypass.

That scheme is part of under-construction plans to build 2,200 homes on the former Drakelow Power Station site. This is an increase from an original plan restricting the development to 99 homes before the bridge and bypass must be built and a subsequent relaxation to 400 homes, which has caused much local frustration.

However, as part of the decision, the developer is now legally required to complete the bridge and bypass by December 31, 2025, at the latest, with other obligatory milestones it must hit along the way. This includes only being able to occupy 635 homes before starting the bridge and bypass.

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If it does not meet those milestones, including the completion date, the developer will be served with either a legal stop notice or an injunction by the district council, the meeting was told. The district council will be regularly monitoring house-building on the site to ensure no more homes than are allowed are being built or occupied.

Meanwhile, the developer has agreed to put £1.5 million into an escrow account which it will lose should it fail to complete the bridge and bypass on time. Prior to the meeting, the developer had offered to give £20 million to Derbyshire County Council and Staffordshire County Council to build the bridge and bypass themselves.

The councils rejected this offer because they felt the £20 million would not cover the total cost of the project and it would present a burden on the public purse. This had followed district councillors asking the firm to put the whole cost of the bridge and bypass into an escrow account as a commitment to carry out the project.

However, the firm too rejected this offer saying it would need the money readily available to be able to build the scheme. Council officers said the money could be drawn down from the escrow account but the developer still refused.

Cllr Alistair Tilley told the meeting that Rosliston would become a “rat-run” under the proposed plans, with the area already frequently backed up with traffic, including HGV traffic. Cllr Amy Wheelton said residents had waited 20 years for the bridge and bypass to be built and needed certainty now more than ever.

She said the impact of traffic did not factor in ongoing issues with a weight restriction on the historic Chetwynd Bridge, impacting heavy vehicle routes, along with Catton Hall event congestion and new energy generation and storage facilities nearby. Cllr Wheelton said of the failure from the developer to front the £20 million in an escrow account: “You have either got the £20 million or you haven’t got the £20 million. It is a contradiction from the developer.”

A resident chose to leave the meeting during discussions, shouting: “You are a shambles. You are a joke. The developers need to have the money for it. It is an absolute joke.” Councillors approved the expansion to allow 785 homes to be built before the bridge and bypass, which must now be built by December 31, 2025, along with set deadlines.

This was decided by a vote of seven votes for, three votes against and three councillors abstaining. Members of the public, around 20 of whom attended the Swadlincote meeting, yelled “what an absolute joke” as they left.

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