Northern Access Corridor Phase 3 – Osborne Road to A189 / A191 Haddricks Mill

Scheme Background and Description:

Scheme name

Scheme Description:

The wider scheme is a package of works on the main north-south and east-west routes north of Newcastle’s city centre. The proposals directly complement and add value to existing investment from government and to wider plans for improving transport access to, through and around Newcastle city centre.

The Northern Access Corridor (NAC, shown in green on Figure 1) runs east west about 1km north of Newcastle city centre and is bisected by the Gosforth Transport Improvements Corridor running north-south at Blue House roundabout.

The NAC covers the A167 from Cowgate, along the A189 to Haddricks Mill roundabouts and will be split into three phases. Because some of the work under Phase 2 can be undertaken more quickly, this phase has been further subdivided:

• Phase 1 Cowgate junction • Phase 2a Cowhill Interchange and Duke's Moor junction • Phase 2b Blue House roundabout and Osborne Road junction • Phase 3 Haddricks Mill roundabouts.

The Gosforth Transport Improvement (GTI) corridor follows the B1318 connecting the A1 to Newcastle city centre and runs through a popular residential and busy local retail area. A mixture of Section 106 funding and a Cycle Safety Grant from government has seen work already commence on the roads and intelligent infrastructure in the area. This has been complemented by the incorporation of Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras on this route as part of the Better Bus Areas grant to Tyne and Wear (this area of the city carries a large number of public transport trips) to help support better information for users and more reliable journey times underpinned by our investment in the Urban Traffic Management Control centre.

The NAC and GTI corridors currently lack the provision of linking between signal controlled junctions to co-ordinate movements on the wider highway. Urban Traffic Management and Control (UTMC) will be used to manage strategic issues for the city’s network and optimise vehicle flow to minimise the impact of disruption, which will contribute to the reduction of local emissions and wider air quality improvements in the city.

A separate scheme is being progressed by Nexus, North Tyneside Council and Newcastle City Council to replace a rail bridge over, and widen Killingworth Road on the A189 just north of Haddricks Mill. North Tyneside Council have also carried out improvements east of Haddricks Mill on the A191 at Four Lane Ends.

Figure 1 Location of the Northern Access Corridor

The NAC/GTI corridors facilitate a similar number of journeys in all directions during peak hours – owing to it serving Newcastle City Centre, out of town business parks in North Tyneside (including Gosforth, Quorum and Balliol), an office park in the vicinity of a public transport interchange (Regent Centre), a local retail and employment centre (Gosforth High Street), and individual large employers (including the Freeman Hospital, Sage, and HM Revenue and Customs offices). The implementation of this scheme is the second phase in a series of investment and improvements facilitated by government.

The corridor from the Blue House roundabout to Haddricks Mill and Gosforth High Street are subject to Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) Action Plans due to levels of pollution exceeding National Air Quality Objective limits. The main source of the air pollution is traffic. A key part of the council’s Air Quality Action Plan is to encourage people to use alternative cleaner, healthier forms of transport such as walking, cycling and public transport for local journeys. It is expected that improvements to the traffic flow as a result of these proposals will help continue the trend of improving air quality in this area. Collisions on the junctions of the corridors are also a concern and the proposals will reduce these. Area Slight 2009 - 14 Serious 2009 - Fatal 2009 - 14 14 Cowgate Roundabout 46 Cowhill 2 1 Grandstand Rd/ Kenton 10 1 Rd Junction Bluehouse Roundabout 42 3 Osborne/Jesmond Rd 10 1 Hadricks Mill junction 41 1 Gosforth Corridor 94 7 1 Moorfield to Broadway roundabout Figure 2. Collisions on corridors from 2009

Phasing of the work NAC Phase 1 and GTI The NAC and GTI corridors together represent major investment in transport improvements in the north of Newcastle. They are designed to work together and full efficiency will not be achieved until all work is complete but each section has intrinsic benefits for all users.

An undertaking of this size needs to be phased. Constraints which affect the phasing include • Funding sources • Network considerations taking account of the need to retain access to the city centre • Nature of work proposed • Efficient use of resources • Design • Planning permission • Environmental and traffic assessments • Land acquisition • Timing of work affecting natural environment • Stakeholder engagement and required consultation bearing in mind the election ‘purdah’ period (24 March to 5 May 2016)

The full package of NAC and GTI was originally submitted to the DfT for under Major Scheme funding but the funding source was withdrawn. The scheme was then redrawn to take advantage of a variety of funding sources, each with its own timetable and timings adjusted. The main sources of funding are

• On Cowgate roundabout, DfT Pinch Point Fund and Better Bus funding for Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras • At GTI, Cycle Safety Improvement Fund, Developer Funding, Cycle City Ambition Fund • At Killingworth Road, Highways Maintenance Fund • NAC Phase 2 and 3, application to LGF • LTP funding • Compass4D funding for ITS and air quality monitoring trial

Because of earlier funding awards and work to address the above constraints, sections of the GTI scheme are complete and work is well advanced at Cowgate roundabout. ITS control on these junctions will allow control of traffic movement during work at Blue House and Haddricks Mill improving traffic flow as well as the safety of all users.

The phasing of the rest of the NAC work, where the funding is mainly from LGF, is determined by the complexity of the work proposed.

Phase 2a Cowhill and Dukes Moor The proposals are minor in scope, and going ahead with this work will allow the wider scheme to remain on track. The proposals require no planning permission or land acquisition. There has already been engagement with the bus operators and other stakeholders will be covered by the standard technical consultation procedure. Designs are finalised and costings firm so the council has deemed there is only a low risk, and many efficiency advantages to proceeding now.

VMS The VMS equipment can also be purchased early. The VMS equipment will be installed on the approaches to junctions and is not dependent on the work at the junctions.

Phase 2b Blue House and Osborne Road The Blue House roundabout is surrounded by land under the control of the Freemen of Newcastle. Any effective improvements at the roundabout will mean taking land from what is currently open space. The Freemen are supportive of the improvements being made here and negotiations are ongoing around the detail of the design proposals and the amount of land they are willing to allow to be taken.

In addition to these the designs of the Blue House and Osborne Road junctions is dependent on the design of Haddricks Mill for balance and as such the submission for the Full Business Case for these sections of Phase 2 and the OBC/FBC for Phase 3 could not be progressed until a designs is agreed.

Phase 3 Haddricks Mill In order to ensure access to the city centre, work will not take place on Blue House and Haddricks Mill at the same time. A preferred design for Haddricks Mill has been chosen but is not yet ready to go out for public engagement. This will be detailed and developed in a subsequent phase 3 OBC and FBC.

In order to reach a final design preparatory work is needed as detailed below.

Killingworth Road

The work at Killingworth Road is being taken forward separately but will be phased alongside the NAC/GTI work to minimise disruption to traffic.

North of Haddricks Mill the A189 forms a key commuting corridor in both directions: between the suburbs of North Tyneside and the major employment centre in Newcastle, and between residential neighbourhoods in Newcastle and growing business parks in North Tyneside. Housing growth points also exist to the north of the corridor. £13.423M has been secured from the Highways Maintenance Challenge Fund for a separate scheme being progressed by Nexus, North Tyneside Council and Newcastle City Council to replace a rail bridge over Killingworth Road, widen the road, and resurface sections of the road at Haddricks Mill.

The railway bridge is a narrow Victorian bridge, currently used by Metro trains, and forms a significant physical pinch point on the A189, leading to delays to vehicular traffic at peak times, including buses, and safety risks to cyclists and pedestrians. Nexus plan to repair the railway bridge in 2017 and the road will be widened to remove a pinch point on the route. In order to widen the road work will be needed on a retaining wall and improvements made to the vegetation behind it to eradicate Japanese Knotweed.

In addition repairs are needed to the existing highway surface and associated structures leading to (and on) the Haddricks Mill junction. Ad hoc maintenance will impact on the efficiency of the transport system and attractiveness of the geography for regeneration. In addition, securing funding to maintain roads and footways and to enhance the retaining structure and under bridge will not only further enhance capacity, but also improve accessibility and connectivity for pedestrians, cyclists and public transport and enable an integrated scheme to be delivered.

The scheme will • Replace the rail bridge and widen the road • Repair the highway surface • Widen footpaths and create cycle lanes • Repair a retaining wall • Tackle a Japanese knotweed infestation in the undergrowth at the side of the road

Work at Killingworth Road will take into account the work at Haddricks Mill but the scheme, and its necessary resources, permissions etc are being taken forward separately. Nexus plan to redevelop the bridge in the summer of 2017.

Haddricks Mill and first stage submission

The Haddricks Mill junction is located approximately 2 km to the north of Newcastle City Centre close to the Newcastle/North Tyneside district boundary. Haddricks Mill junction is a double mini roundabout junction that experiences significant congestion during the peak hours on all approaches with extensive queues on the Station Road and Haddricks Mill approaches. The irregular layout of the junction is governed by the presence of a culvert that restricts the number of lanes between the two mini-roundabouts. It experiences substantial numbers of collisions due to its irregular layout. The junction also has inadequate facilities for public transport, pedestrians and cyclists. Station Road and Haddricks Mill Road have very high pedestrian flows at the two pedestrian crossings sited within a very short distance from the roundabout giveway lines. These giveway lines are often unoccupied due to the pedestrian crossings, leaving vehicles unable to fully utilise the potential capacity of the roundabouts. The junction is considered to have a confusing layout that is difficult to navigate. Existing provision of signage and road markings is poor. The Haddricks Mill roundabouts are at the low points of the A189 and A191 on a bridge structure spanning the valley of the Ouseburn. There is some surface water flooding to the south west of the junction and attenuation will be taken into account. There is some BT cabling in the area and this will have to be relocated. The area of scheme is varied in terms of wildlife habitat and the Ouseburn watercourse which runs through the site north to south is heavily planted. It is designated as a wildlife corridor. An initial assessment has shown Japanese Knotweed in the vicinity and this will need to be eradicated. Although there are no houses fronting directly onto the roundabouts there are private homes on the approach roads on land that may be affected by the scheme and businesses on four of the approach roads. It is proposed to remove the existing mini roundabout junctions and provide a roundabout with a larger circulatory. This will be signalised and will incorporate the full signalisation of secondary junctions. The scheme includes the provision of pedestrian crossing facilities across all arms. The proposed scheme forms part of a wider traffic management scheme in and along the Gosforth corridor considered by the Council’s Executive committee and widely consulted on in 2009. The key objectives of the scheme are as follows: • To assist in the reduction of congestion that occurs at the junction during the peak periods • To provide the conditions for more reliable and punctual bus services; • To increase the market share and competitiveness of public transport; • To ensure that all existing and new developments of significance are easily accessible by bus; • To remove barriers to integration between travel modes and services; • To provide improved pedestrian and cycle access between adjacent housing and retail developments; • To encourage modal shift; • To provide road safety benefits at the junction; • To address transport-related social exclusion. The location of the scheme in relation to Newcastle City Centre can be seen below:

Because of tight configuration any improvements are likely to involve using land outside the existing highway envelope. Deliverables will include • Replacing double mini roundabouts with single priority roundabout • Partial signalisation with signals linked to ITS • Improved pedestrian and cycle crossings • Some realignment of surrounding traffic network • Eradication of Japanese Knotweed

The First Stage submission The council is applying for funding from the LGF for preparatory work needed to progress the Haddricks Mill scheme to a final design stage. Because of the complexity of the junction’s traffic movements, topography and environment, considerable preparation work is needed. A preferred design for Haddricks Mill has been chosen but is not yet ready to go out for public engagement. Traffic movements at the junction have been modelled taking into account proposals for the rest of the NAC junctions. As the Haddricks Mill roundabouts are at the low points of the A189 and A191, the topography will affect the design and construction. An accurate topographic survey is needed and dead wood clearance carried out before this could be done. The environment around the junctions is heavily planted and forms a wildlife corridor. A Phase 1 Habitat survey has been carried out. Further Environmental Assessment will be carried out during the breeding season to determine the presence of any sensitive species and what mitigation measures will be appropriate. Preliminary stats work has been carried out to resite telecommunications cables to allow other work to go ahead. As well as the natural environment there are businesses and residents near the roundabouts that may be affected by proposals. Accurate and sensitive public engagement will be needed to ensure that stakeholders understand what is proposed and to avoid raising anxiety. Public engagement and consultation cannot take place on proposals until after the election ‘purdah’ period but preparatory work can go ahead.

First stage deliverables - Phase 1 habitat assessment - Preliminary site clearance - Topographic survey - Land ownership investigation - Phase 1 BT remedial works - Favoured design and modelling

Programme and milestones Key investment milestones Date specific to this approved project EIA start March 2016 EIA completion July 2016 Land ownership searches April 2015 Topographic survey start September 2015 Topographic survey complete April 2016 Phase 1 BT remedial works March 2016 Design optioneering and modelling start October 2015 Favoured design and modelling completion Feb 2016 Public engagement June 2016 Further wider programme milestones Gosforth Scheme start on site September 2013 Gosforth Scheme completion July 2016 Cowgate scheme start on site October 2014 Cowgate scheme completion May 2016 VMS purchase March 2016 VMS completion June 2016 ITS/signalling upgrades July 2016 Cowhill junction improvements on site March 2016 Dukesmoor improvements on site April 2016 Cowhill junction improvements completion June 2016 Haddricks Mill Detailed design complete November 2016 Killingworth Road Final Design August 2016 Killingworth Road on site August 2016 Haddricks Mill on site March 2017 Dukesmoor improvements completion July 2016 Blue House/Osborne Detail designs October 2016 Planning application Blue House submitted. June 2016 Planning Permission Granted September 2016 On-site BH/OsR October 2016 BH/OsR April 2018 Killingworth Road Complete December 2017 Haddricks Mill Complete August 2018

Phase 3 Stage 1 Risks

There are a number of outstanding outcomes that need to be finalised to move forward with a Full Business Case for Phase 3 of the Northern Access Corridor. They include;

1. Detailed design 2. Costings 3. Quantitative Risk Assessment

To finalise a detailed design for the project the following tasks need to be completed:

• Obtaining planning permission - a planning application has not been submitted at this point as survey work still needs to be completed. Various surveys are required to inform the detail design for the scheme including an Environmental Impact Assessment. The survey work that is necessary for the assessment can only be carried out at certain times of the year (mainly between April and June) and it has not been possible to carry this out yet. Once this has been completed it will inform any mitigation works that need to be carried out and inform the detailed design of the project. • Land acquisition - until there is a final design it is not possible to ascertain exactly how much land is required to deliver the scheme. Landowners will then be approached and if they are unwilling to sell their land, the design will have to be revisited. • Consultation - consultation with residents, local stakeholders and statutory consultees will inform the design/implementation of the junction.

Once there is a final design for the scheme it can be costed and a Quantitative Risk Assessment can be completed.

As well as the outstanding outcomes detailed above, the following have already been completed:

• Phase 1 Habitat Assessment • Preliminary site clearance • Topographical survey • Land ownership investigation • Phase 1 BT remedial works • Favoured design and modelling

The following is taken from the Risk Log, full risk log is appended

Risk Cause Impact Mitigation

Loss of support Loss of bus operator Difficulty in Constant engagement support based on progressing required Early engagement change in strategy or TROs and potential impact of bus quality loss of public support. Public engagement – contracts responsive design Re-scoping exercise of changes. Good and Uncertainty of statutory undertakers MSBC submission early promotion of the scheme Loss of local Collapse of political/officers partnership resulting in Make clear to support to the scheme delay to programme politicians requirement for scheme. Maintain Partnership working Programme will not existing dialogue breaks down proceed without support for the HA Considerable Lack of support from consultation already Highways Agency taken place. Programme may have Considerable buy in an adverse effect on from political leads. trunk roads by Ongoing engagement increasing traffic and inclusion of levels. engagement Loss of support from workstream. statutory consultees. Continual engagement Loss of support from and effective cycling groups management throughout Do not get media support. Consultation pre- submission and letters Consultation is not of support prior to perceived as submission to DfT. transparent. Consistent Untimely consultation messages/branding to politicians, stakeholders/ public

Any planning and/or Identified as part of Scheme are not Re-scoping exercise of highways approvals programme entry compliant with Local MSBC submission requested may be submission to be Plan policies refused Scheme will not managed throughout Insufficient sampling of proceed without the detailed design environmental assets planning permission process Delay to progress

Management issues Delay to progress. Council unable to Co-ordination with Programme loses deploy sufficient scheduled focus management maintenance and resource. utilisation of Traffic Management Act to Council unable to ensure compatibility deploy sufficient resource Utilisation of framework partners Periods of Purdah where necessary

Technical difficulties Drainage/flooding Doesn’t fit into the Detailed design to be issues project programme, responsive to statutory delays undertakings. Trial Land survey trenches to be used to information is Delay to progress until discover locations and inaccurate or agreement reached apparatus inadequate Delay to progress. Early consideration Objections from the Programme loses during full approval emergency services focus process and inclusion Environmental impacts of generous time on the Ouseburn and programming in Killingworth Road detailed time programming Design fails to meet the expectations of the Full survey via the key stakeholders land registry as part of programme entry and Inaccurate traffic detailed design forecasts Consultation Objectives of the throughout the scheme are not met detailed design Nexus bus network process design changes Continual engagement Changes in design with partners due to public throughout the design consultation process Environmental issues to be fully evaluated as part of detailed design and programme entry To be managed through the detailed design process

Phase 3 Stage 1 Funding profile

Land acquisition 0 Building acquisition 0

Site investigation 120,000 Studies / Design 100,000 Site preparation 64,000 Building / Construction costs 66,000 Plant & Machinery 0 Fees 150,000 Contingencies 0 Other Grand Total 500,000 500,000

How the wider scheme relates to NECA’s policy criteria:

Criterion 1: Will the scheme contribute to the creation of new jobs and retention of existing jobs in the North East LEP area?

The junction provides a key connection between the residential areas to the north of Newcastle and from North Tyneside to the City Centre. These areas will benefit from improved accessibility by all modes to key private sector employment sites in the City Centre including Science Central, the Discovery Quarter and the Stephenson Quarter.

The proposed scheme will contribute substantially to the retention of existing jobs. The junction is located in close proximity to key employment sites including the HM Revenues and Customs, the Department of Work and Pensions and the Freeman Hospital. The junction is also in close proximity to companies identified in the North East’s Top 200 such as Home Group Ltd, PD Parks Holdings Ltd and Virgin Money.

Analysis of the Tyne & Wear Transport Planning Model identifies that 53.9% of all vehicle trips to HM Revenues and Customs, Department of Work and Pensions and the Freeman Hospital pass through Haddricks Mill Junction.

The proposed junction provides a key connection to development opportunities across the region and in particular to North Tyneside. The Local Development Framework for North Tyneside Council has identified a number of employment opportunities that would benefit from the proposed scheme. These include developments at Balliol Business Park and Gosforth Business Park.

Analysis of the Tyne & Wear Transport Planning Model identifies that 7.91% of all vehicle trips to Balliol Business Park and Gosforth Business Park pass through Haddricks Mill Junction.

The two major schemes proposed for the A188/A189 corridor, the Blue House major scheme in Newcastle and Four Lane Ends/A188 major scheme in North Tyneside, will both support substantial improvements to journeys in this economically strategic corridor, which serves major employment sites both along its route and in central Newcastle, and the two schemes will act to facilitate further economic growth.

In addition large public sector employers will benefit from the scheme including Newcastle City Council, The University of Newcastle and The University of Northumbria which cumulatively employ in the region of 25,000 staff.

At a very local level, the junction is located in the immediate vicinity of Gosforth District Centre.

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation, are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

In addition the proposed scheme will improve the journey times by 21359 vehicle minutes from and to the city centre, by decreasing the delays and by improving the capacity of the junction.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

Morning Peak Evening Peak Approach 07:00 – 08:00 08:00 – 09:00 16:00 – 17:00 17:00 – 18:00 Haddricks Mill 0 minutes 5 0 minutes 16 1 minutes 44 1 minutes 33 Road seconds seconds seconds seconds 1 minutes 1 0 minutes 26 2 minutes 0 1 minutes 35 Station Road seconds seconds seconds seconds Killingworth 2 minutes 42 1 minutes 58 0 minutes 39 0 minutes 31 Road seconds seconds seconds seconds Benton Park 0 minutes 3 0 minutes 3 0 minutes 56 0 minutes 28 Road seconds seconds seconds seconds 0 minutes 35 0 minutes 23 1 minutes 4 1 minutes 8 Freeman Road seconds seconds seconds seconds

Category Site name or reference No. of Jobs Scheme will Support Local Plan Ref 4757 Land adjacent to DSS 285 Other Designated Site (s) NT031/NT057 Balliol Business 2840 Park NT055 Gosforth Business Park 1135 Locally Significant Employers Employer name Evidence of significance No. of Benefit of Scheme Employees HMRC & DWP Staff numbers 10,000 Journey time and reliability, providing improved accessibility to jobs Freeman Hospital Staff numbers 6,500 Journey time and reliability, providing improved accessibility to jobs Home Group North East Top 200 3,375 Journey time and reliability, Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs Technology Services North East Top 200 489 Journey time and reliability, Group Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs PD Parks Holdings Ltd North East Top 200 1,639 Journey time and reliability, Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs ISOS Housing Group North East Top 200 367 Journey time and reliability, Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs Virgin Money North East Top 200 2417 Journey time and reliability, Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs Grainger Games North East Top 200 362 Journey time and reliability, Businesses providing improved accessibility to jobs

Criterion 2: Will the scheme support the North East LEP area gateways?

The scheme will support the North East LEP area gateways at national, regional and local level.

The junction provides a key connection between residential areas to the north of Newcastle including North Tyneside and Northumberland, to Newcastle City Centre. The junction therefore provides a key connection by all modes to Newcastle City Centre and will benefit accessibility by all modes connecting to Newcastle Central Station and the National Express Bus Terminal. The LEP’s Draft North East Rail Strategy also identifies Newcastle Central Station as the busiest railway station in the North East LEP area, acting as a key strategic rail connection for much of the area.

Newcastle is on the East Coast Mainline and provides direct connections between London and Scotland. Other key regional centres that can be reached include Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds.

Analysis of the Tyne & Wear Transport Planning Model identifies that the 1.1% of all vehicle trips to the City Centre pass through Haddricks Mill Junction.

The proximity to the City Centre also enables excellent connections to regional transport gateways, including the Tyne and Wear Metro, local regional rail stations and the main bus interchanges that provide connections across the north east region.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region.

The A189 and A191 which pass through the junction are designated as part of the road freight network for Tyne and Wear. It is expected that drivers will use this network to access freight destinations within Tyne and Wear, wherever possible.

An analysis of 2010 Newcastle City Council cordon flows identifies the percentage of total traffic approaching the junction from the north that are goods vehicle as 7% in the Morning Peak and 6% in the Evening Peak.

Gateway(s) affected by scheme: Amount/proportion of gateway trips impacted by 1.1% of all vehicle trips to the City Centre improvement pass through Haddricks Mill Junction Amount/proportion of freight impacted by improvement 7% in the Morning Peak and 6% in the (tonnage and value) Evening Peak Time savings for gateway trips or freight 1.1% of all vehicle trips to the City Centre will benefit from the time savings outlined above

Criterion 3: Will the scheme encourage the development or retention of skilled jobs (NVQ level 4 and above) and support sites that deliver the training for such skills?

The scheme will encourage the development and the retention of skilled jobs and support sites that deliver training for such skills.

The junction is in close proximity to Newcastle sub-regional centre and therefore will benefit accessibility by all modes to key private sector skilled employment sites including Newcastle Science City. Newcastle Science City was designated as one of six Science Cities in 2005 in recognition of the world class research being undertaken by its universities and the potential of its science industry base. The city has identified three main areas of excellence which are Ageing & Health, Sustainability and Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine.

Science City consists of a number of sites including Science Central, Centre for Life, Campus for Ageing and Vitality at Newcastle University and the Newcastle University Business School.

The City Centre also contains key education facilities including the University of Newcastle, The University of Northumbria and Newcastle College.

Apprenticeships and training opportunities are substantial in Newcastle City Centre. These include opportunities through the City Council and the Universities, Connexions, ETC Development Trust, Future Strategies, Job Centre Plus, UXL Consortium of Work Based Learning Providers, National Housing Federation and the National Skill Academy.

The scheme will encourage the creation and retention of skilled jobs and the promotion of training opportunities by fulfilling the key objectives as outlined in the Scheme Description.

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

In addition the proposed scheme will improve the journey times by 12467 vehicle minutes from and to the city centre, by decreasing the delays and improving the capacity of the junction by 10%.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

Name of employment sites or Nature and level of training Benefit of the scheme training centre provided City Council and the Universities, Connexions, ETC Development Trust, Future Journey time and reliability Strategies, Job Centre Plus, Apprenticeships and training providing improved accessibility UXL Consortium of Work Based opportunities to training and educational Learning Providers, National opportunities. Housing Federation, National Skills Academy Journey time and reliability Retention of skilled jobs and providing improved accessibility Newcastle Science City opportunities to training and educational opportunities. These institutions provide high Journey time and reliability University of Newcastle, level of education up to a providing improved accessibility University of Northumbria, Masters and PhD level in to training and educational Newcastle College various sectors opportunities.

Criterion 4: Will the scheme provide sustainable access solutions to existing and growing development corridors, centres and sectors, or support housing growth?

The key objectives of the scheme include measures to promote sustainable access to existing and growing development corridors, centres and sectors and to support housing growth.

The junction is located in Gosforth and therefore will benefit accessibility by all modes to the Urban Core and key LEP growth sectors including creative and digital, life sciences and business professional services. Facilities developing these sectors include Newcastle Science City, the University of Newcastle, University of Northumbria and the vast number of businesses providing professional services in the City Centre.

The junction will provide key benefits to a number of key corridors and centres including Balliol Business Park and Gosforth Business Park and Balliol West.

Analysis of the Tyne & Wear Transport Planning Model identifies that 7.91% of all vehicle trips to Balliol Business Park and Gosforth Business Park pass through Haddricks Mill Junction.

In addition the proposed junction will provide benefits to Newcastle City Centre, the key centre for business in the North East. However given the proximity of the junction to boundary to adjacent local authorities, the proposed scheme is considered to improve connections to key towns including Ashington, Cramlington and Blyth amongst others.

The proposed scheme will contribute substantially to supporting housing growth. The Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) for Newcastle City Council has identified a number of housing opportunities that would benefit from the proposed scheme. These include the strategic allocations in the Newcastle Urban Core.

The proposed junction also provides a key connection to development opportunities across the region and in particular to North Tyneside. The Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment (SHLAA) for North Tyneside Council has identified a number of housing opportunities that would benefit from the proposed scheme. These include developments at Annitsford Farm and Whitehouse Farm.

In Newcastle the largest impacts of the LDF traffic include the Great North Road. Without mitigation, the spatial location of additional congestion through to 2030, incorporating background growth and the LDF is shown in Figure 2 below. Yellow shading shows additional congested junctions and links brought about by the Core Strategy Scenario. The area of the Northern Access Corridor can be seen to require mitigation. Haddricks Mill junction in particular (and the approaches to it) show significant congestion without mitigation.

Figure 2 LDF modelling: No Mitigation – Congestion locations AM and PM peak 2030

Sectors/Business Evidence of significance Benefit of the scheme Corridors/Key Centres Business Sectors Business Professional Services Newcastle City Centre as a sub- Journey time and reliability, regional centre including Virgin providing improved accessibility Money, Newcastle Building to Newcastle City Centre Society, Dickinson Dees etc Life Sciences Newcastle Science City Journey time and reliability, including Centre for Life. providing improved accessibility Freeman Hospital and to Newcastle City Centre, Northumbria University Coach Freeman Hospital and Coach Lane Campus located adjacent Lane Campus to junction Creative and Digital Newcastle Science City and Journey time and reliability, University Campuses providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre Development Corridors Balliol Business Park East North Tyneside Local Journey time and reliability, (North Tyneside preferred Development Framework providing improved accessibility option) to jobs Gosforth Business Park and North Tyneside Local Journey time and reliability, Balliol West (North Tyneside Development Framework providing improved accessibility preferred option) to jobs Housing Annitsford Farm (406 dwellings) North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre Whitehouse Farm (366 North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, dwellings) providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre St Joseph's Training Centre (24 North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, dwellings) providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre Killingworth Leisure Centre (40 North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, dwellings) providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre Meadway House (36 dwellings) North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre Land to the north of Amberley North Tyneside SHLAA Journey time and reliability, Primary School (35 dwellings) providing improved accessibility to Newcastle City Centre

Criterion 5: Will the scheme ensure capacity and speed of transport links to and within the North East LEP area are maintained and enhanced in order to increase the attractiveness of the North East LEP area as a place to do business, boosting inward investment and improving competitiveness of indigenous firms?

The junction provides a key connection between residential areas to the north of Newcastle including North Tyneside and Northumberland, to Newcastle City Centre. The junction therefore provides a key connection by all modes to Newcastle City Centre and therefore will benefit accessibility by all modes connecting to Newcastle Central Station and the National Express Bus Terminal. The LEP’s Draft Transport Strategy also identifies Newcastle Central Station as the busiest railway station in the North Eastern LEP area, acting as a key strategic rail connection for much of the area. Newcastle is on the East Coast Mainline and provides direct links to London and Scotland. Other key regional centres that can be reached include Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds.

The proximity to the City Centre also enables excellent connections to the public transport network. This includes the Tyne and Wear Metro, local regional rail stations and the main bus interchanges that provide connections across the north east region.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region.

The proposed junction will provide regional cross boundary benefits given its proximity to North Tyneside and Northumberland.

Clearly the junction will provide improvements at district and local level given its location within a developed residential area and its proximity to existing retail facilities.

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

In addition the proposed scheme will improve the journey times by 12467 vehicle minutes from and to the city centre, by decreasing the delays and by improving the capacity of the junction by 10%.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

The graphs below identify the average queue lengths for the existing and proposed junctions on the approach arms to the junction.

AM Queues

PM Queues

Criterion 6: Will the scheme deliver improved accessibility from residential areas to areas that have employment, education or other opportunities?

The junction is located in a developed residential area to the north of Newcastle City Centre. The proposed scheme includes improvements to the junction for travel by all modes. The scheme will therefore provide improved accessibility to the following sectors:

Employment Newcastle City Centre, Walker Riverside, Balliol Business Park, Gosforth Business Park.

Education The University of Newcastle, The University of Northumbria, Newcastle College. Local schools.

Health Royal Victoria Infirmary, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle Dental Hospital, Northern Centre for Cancer Care, Great North Children’s Hospital, Campus for Ageing and Vitality, Newcastle Fertility Centre, Northern Genetics Service. Local medical centres.

Skills Science Central, Centre for Life, Campus for Ageing and Vitality at Newcastle University and the Newcastle University Business School.

Leisure Eldon Leisure Centre, Newcastle University Sports Centre, City Pool, Longbenton Sports Ground, David Lloyds Tennis Centre, Northumberland County Tennis Ground.

Retail Newcastle City Centre, adjacent local shopping facilities.

An analysis of the residential areas within 1km of the scheme has been undertaken to ascertain the unemployment rate, skills level, health ranking and overall IMD rankings. There are 32482 Lower Super Output Areas (LSOA) within England. Therefore any LSOAs with a rating lower than 3249 are within the 10% most deprived LSOAs within England. The area covered by the analysis can be seen on the map below and the findings can be seen in the table below. Those within the 10% most deprived LSOAs within England have been highlighted in red:

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

In addition the proposed scheme will improve the journey times by 12467 vehicle minutes from and to the city centre, by decreasing the delays and by improving the capacity of the junction by 10%.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

Residential area name 1km from the scheme Unemployment Rate 2.05 (May08-Apr09) Wards: Dene, East Gosforth Skills levels LA NAME LSOA Rank Newcastle upon Tyne E01008424 28681 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008321 30140 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008354 25490 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008418 32356 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008351 21772 North Tyneside E01008513 4418 North Tyneside E01008515 3173

Newcastle upon Tyne E01008422 32390 IMD (2007) Health Ranking LA NAME LSOA Rank Newcastle upon Tyne E01008424 9706 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008321 17602 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008354 5276 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008418 25500 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008351 9575 North Tyneside E01008513 3226 North Tyneside E01008515 933

Newcastle upon Tyne E01008422 17704 IMD (2007) Overall Ranking LA NAME LSOA Rank Newcastle upon Tyne E01008424 19577 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008321 26395 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008354 14682 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008418 31612 Newcastle upon Tyne E01008351 17580 North Tyneside E01008513 7381 North Tyneside E01008515 3253

Newcastle upon Tyne E01008422 29487 Description of access to Improvements to access for a variety of facilities as listed above will opportunity be achieved (employment/education/other opportunity) Benefit of the scheme Journey time and reliability, providing improved accessibility to facilities for local residents

Criterion 7: Will the scheme contribute to an improvement in the overall quality of journeys, particularly those providing links to employment and health or education opportunities?

The junction is located close to Newcastle City Centre and will provide accessibility benefits by all modes connecting to employment, health and education opportunities at the sites identified below:

Employment Newcastle City Centre, Walker Riverside, Balliol Business Park, Gosforth Business, Park. Science Central, Centre for Life, Campus for Ageing and Vitality at Newcastle University and the Newcastle University Business School.

Education The University of Newcastle, The University of Northumbria, Newcastle College. Local schools.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region.

The scheme includes elements of bus priority and therefore journey times and importantly journey reliability through the junction will be improved.

The proposed scheme includes the provision of at grade crossings. These will be in addition to the existing subways. This will improve personal security and target the fear of crime associated with the existing subway provision.

The scheme will include a review of the existing street lighting provision to ensure it is up to the standard required of a traffic signal controlled junction. Upgrades to the junction will be provided.

The scheme will include a review of the existing signage provision to ensure it is relevant to the revised traffic signal controlled layout. This will ensure suitable information is provided to vehicular users.

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

The new scheme will improve the quality of the journeys as it will improve the journey time reliability. The journey times will become more consistent. The daily journey time in Haddrick Mills junction is 65799 veh.minutes. It is estimated that, with the new scheme, the difference to the average speed in journey times will be reduced by 12467 veh.minutes.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

The new scheme will improve the quality of the journeys as it will improve journey time reliability. The daily journey time will be reduced and the combination of improved reliability and speed will significantly enhance the utility of public transport through this key junction. This should help retain modal share and encourage modal shift towards public transport. Modal shift will also be achieved through the provision of bus priority measures such as using Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) to identify late running buses, improvements to the pedestrian infrastructure and removing barriers to integration between travel modes.

Criterion 8: Will the scheme contribute to an overall improvement in the local environment including improving local air quality or reducing the noise impact of transport corridors?

Local Air Quality The scheme’s key objectives include encouraging modal shift. This will be achieved through the provision of bus priority measures such as using Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) to identify late running buses, improvements to the pedestrian infrastructure and removing barriers to integration between travel modes. The junction will benefit from enhanced intelligent signals that will form a traffic management zone with neighbouring junctions and the CME. The benefit of linking these junctions together allows for a district level of coordination between junctions and ultimately through Urban Traffic Management and Control the junctions can be used to manage strategic issues for the city’s network. This level of control should optimise the flow of vehicles and minimise the impact of disruption. This will reduce emissions locally and contribute to city wide improvements to air quality.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region and therefore journey times and importantly journey reliability through the junction will be improved.

Vehicular delays for the existing layout, and the reduced delays following scheme implementation are outlined below:

Peak Hour Practical Reserve Capacity Delay PCU/Hr Existing Vehicular Delay Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 Proposed Scheme Vehicular Delay Morning -62.1% 323.5 Evening -28.7% 154.5

This demonstrates that delay, i.e. queuing, will be reduced at the junction as a result of the proposed scheme. This will have a benefit for local air quality that has not been quantified at this stage.

Noise Impact The impact on overall background noise levels will be a benefit. With the new scheme the average speed in the area will be increased by 10.2% and it will reach the present off-peak average speed. This will contribute to the decrease of the noise impact as there will be less congestion and queuing and consequently less acceleration of the cars. This is considered to benefit 1971 existing residential dwellings that are located within 500 metres around the scheme.

However the application of intelligent signals may result in changing queue patterns which could increase localised noise around the junction.

Noise – nature and quantification of Increase of average speed by 19.4% during peak change or impact periods No. Dwellings affected by noise: 1616 existing dwellings Air quality – nature and quantification of Delay and queuing reduced at the junction resulting in change or impact reduction in emissions AQMAs or sites of concern affected: None Environmental or cultural significance – Localised benefit to air quality and noise impact nature of change or impact Area of environmental or cultural None significance (name and designation) Magnitude of impact on area of N/A environmental and cultural significance

Criterion 9: Will the scheme contribute to an overall reduction in carbon emissions relative to the existing situation?

The scheme’s key objectives include encouraging modal shift which will result in an overall reduction in carbon emissions. This will be achieved through the provision of bus priority measures such as using AVL, improvements to the pedestrian infrastructure and removing barriers to integration between travel modes. The junction will benefit from enhanced intelligent signals and UTC/UTMC enhancements that will form a traffic management zone with neighbouring junctions and the CME. This level of control should optimise the flow of vehicles and minimise the impact of disruption. This will reduce emissions locally and contribute to city wide improvements to carbon emissions.

The junction is in close proximity to Newcastle City Centre and therefore will benefit accessibility by all modes connecting to Newcastle Central Station and the National Express Bus Terminal. Newcastle is on the East Coast Mainline and provides direct services to London and Scotland. Other key regional centres that can be reached include Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds. The LEP’s Draft Transport Strategy also identifies Newcastle Central Station as the busiest railway station in the North Eastern LEP area, acting as a key strategic rail connection for much of the area.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region and therefore journey times and importantly journey reliability through the junction will be improved.

With the new scheme the average speed in the area will be increased by 19.4% and it will reach the present off-peak average speed. This will contribute to the reduction of carbon emissions as there will be less congestion and queuing and consequently less acceleration of the cars.

An additional analysis of the journey time savings as a result of the scheme in the peak hours, can be seen below:

Promoted Scheme Comparator Scheme: (name) Potential mode shift Nominal Nominal Potential change in average speed 31 km/h 18 km/h (existing layout including queuing traffic)

Criterion 10: Will the scheme provide the opportunity to improve health, reduce levels of obesity among the population or improve road safety within the area?

Improve health and reduce levels of obesity The scheme’s key objectives include encouraging modal shift. This will be achieved through the provision of bus priority measures such as AVL, improvements to the pedestrian infrastructure and removing barriers to integration between travel modes.

The junction is in close proximity to Newcastle City Centre and therefore will benefit accessibility by all modes connecting to health developments in the City Centre. This includes access to the Royal Victoria Infirmary, Freeman Hospital, Newcastle Dental Hospital, Northern Centre for Cancer Care, Great North Children’s Hospital, Campus for Ageing and Vitality, Newcastle Fertility Centre, Northern Genetics Service, local clinics and health centres.

A large number of local buses pass through the junction at a frequency of approximately 65 buses per hour per hour during the daytime. These provide key local links across the region and therefore journey times and, importantly, journey reliability through the junction will be improved.

The scheme also includes the provision of pedestrian crossing facilities across all arms. The scheme will include standardised cycle improvement measures such as advanced stop lines. This will encourage use of sustainable modes for short distance trips and also integration between modes.

Severance The scheme also includes the provision of pedestrian crossing facilities across all arms. The current junction is considered to provide a deterrent for some people, particularly children and old people, who are likely to be dissuaded from making journeys on foot. For others, pedestrian journeys will be longer or less attractive. This is considered to result in moderate severance. The proposed scheme is considered to remove severance and will result in little or no hindrance to pedestrian movement.

Road Safety An analysis has been undertaken to ascertain the road safety benefits that will be realised as a result of the proposed scheme.

It is assumed that, as a consequence of the introduction of traffic signals, there will be a 30% reduction in the average number of casualties within 5 years. In monetary terms this means that, in the first year of the scheme, the benefit will be £95,866 and the overall scheme benefit will be £2,301,273.

Active travel Potential mode shift Nominal mode shift anticipated IMD health ranking or obesity levels The IMD Ranking analysis can be seen within Criterion 6 Severance Location of severance Haddricks Mill junction approaches Level of severance now Moderate Estimated level of severance post scheme None implementation Number of people affected by severance 1616 existing dwellings within 1 km Road safety Location of accident cluster Haddricks Mill junction approaches Number of KSIs 3 Serious Potential reduction in KSIs 30%

Value for Money Criteria

Using the value for money section of the Guidance on Evidence, scheme promoters should present below an estimate of the Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR) of the scheme being promoted. This should include a narrative giving a description of how the estimated BCR has been calculated or derived and why it is judged to be appropriate. Information should be provided on the nature of any comparator scheme used or alternatively any other case study information used. Any information used to inform the estimation of BCR should be referenced, or if the information is not available online, it should be appended with the submission of this pro forma.

Value for Money Assessment:

Cost Cost (£)

Haddricks Mill Junction Remodelling £1,783,802

Utilities Diversions £500,000

Optimisation Bias Uplift (44%) £1,004,872

Total £3,288,674

Revised Total (*1.5 average uplift from 02/2013 audit) £4,933,011

Total scheme cost: £4.933 million LTB contribution £4.433 million (89%) Local Contribution package £0.500 million (11%)

Promoted Comparator scheme scheme Scheme Haddricks Mill Gosforth Transport Improvement MSBC Name Junction Improvemnt BCR 5.5 (From GTI 5.5 Scheme Average based on original cost of Scheme Present Value of Average) Costs (PVC)2 £6.158m

This Overall Impact assumption is based on Net Present Value benefits rising (NPV)3 £27.771m with costs on a pro rata basis. Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR)4 5.510

Brief The Haddricks Mill junction is located approximately 2 km to the north of scheme Newcastle City Centre close to the Newcastle/North Tyneside district overview boundary.

Haddricks Mill junction is a double mini roundabout junction that experiences congestion during the peak hours on all approaches

It is proposed to remove the existing mini roundabout junctions and provide a roundabout with a larger circulatory. This will be signalised and will incorporate the full signalisation of secondary junctions. The scheme includes the provision of pedestrian crossing facilities across all arms Objectives of the The key objectives of the scheme are as follows: scheme • To assist in the reduction of congestion that occurs at the junction during the peak periods • To provide the conditions for more reliable and punctual bus services; • To increase the market share and competitiveness of public transport; • To ensure that all existing and new developments of significance are easily accessible by bus; • To remove barriers to integration between travel modes and services; • To provide improved pedestrian and cycle access between adjacent housing and retail developments; • To encourage modal shift; • To provide road safety benefits at the junction; • To address transport-related social exclusion.

Scheme Total scheme cost cost: £4.933 million

Monetised No isolated 44% Optimism benefits TUBA/COBA Bias assessment, however peak TEE Benefits journey time savings are Consumer User Benefits £15.048m significant. The Business User Benefits £16.910m improvement at Haddricks Private Sector Provider Mill alone will provide Benefits £0.000m collision cost savings of Carbon Benefits £-0.178m £654,911.33 per year. Sub-Total (TEE Benefits) £31.780m

Accident Benefits* £2.149m

Present Value of Benefits (PVB)1 £33.929m

Local Government Funding

Investment Costs £0.000m

Central Government Funding

Investment Costs £7.055m

Indirect Tax Revenues £-0.897m

Present Value of Costs (PVC)2 £6.158m

Overall Impact

Net Present Value (NPV)3 £27.771m

Benefit Cost Ratio (BCR)4 5.510

*Accident benefits not from TUBA

2002 prices and values

Non As table below See table below. monetised benefits Operating Adopted Adopted Highway costs Highway Profile of As relevant See Below journey time Section in savings attached GTI MSBC Less than – 5 See Below minutes -5 to -2 See Below minutes -2 to 0 See Below minutes 0 to 2 See Below minutes 2 to 5 See Below minutes Greater than See Below 5 minutes Split between: Business 50% of benefits 50% of benefits users and transport providers Commuting 50% of benefits 50% of benefits and other users Local Contribution

2008 Journey Time Savings Gosforth Transport Improvement MSBC Preferred Option Journey Time Comparison

Route Direction Observed Base AM PM AM PM NB – Blue House + 1 Min 5 - 4 Secs + 47 Secs + 29 Secs to Brunton Lane Secs

SB – Brunton + 3 Min 55 + 1 Min 18 + 1 Min 20 Lane to Blue + 37 Secs Secs Secs Secs House

EB – Salters + 2 Min 18 + 4 Mins 42 + 2 Mins 20 + 1 Min 38 Road to Four Secs Secs Secs Secs Lane Ends

WB – Four Lane + 2 Min 43 + 3 Mins 45 + 1 Min 27 + 1 Min 17 Ends to Church Secs Secs Secs Secs Road

NEB – Blue + 1 Min 31 + 3 Mins 10 + 3 Mins 26 House to Salters + 56 Secs Secs Secs Secs Bridge

SWB – Salters + 5 Min 36 + 1 Min 22 + 1 Mins 59 Bridge to Blue + 1 Min 1 Sec Secs Secs Secs House

Non-monetised benefits.

SUB-OBJECTIVE QUALITATIVE IMPACTS QUANTITATI ASSES VE SMENT Smoothing of traffic flows through changes to signals and bus priority arrangements will None made at Noise cause a small reduction in noise levels on the Neutral this stage corridor. This is likely to be insignificant, however. The proposal will not change air quality Local Air Quality None made Neutral significantly in the area.

Greenhouse The proposal will not change CO2 emissions None made Neutral Gases significantly in the area.

Landscape Not relevant to this appraisal. None made Neutral

The proposal will improve the amenity of the Moderat Townscape Gosforth and Haddricks Mill corridor through None made e improved street design. Benefit

Heritage of Historic Not relevant to this appraisal. None made Neutral Resources

Biodiversity Not relevant to this appraisal. None made Neutral

Water Not relevant to this appraisal. None made Neutral Environment

The proposal will encourage greater use of bus, which will in turn encourage mode shift Slight Physical Fitness from car. Personal fitness levels will be None made Benefit improved through drivers walking to bus stops to begin their journey by bus.

The proposal will improve journey ambience by smoothing traffic flows along the Gosforth/ Moderat Journey Haddricks Mill corridor. This will benefit both None made e Ambience car users and bus users, particularly during Benefit the peaks.

Deliverability Criteria

Using the guidance scheme promoters should complete the tables below to provide evidence on deliverability.

Costs What is the latest estimated cost of the scheme?

Cost Cost (£)

Haddricks Mill Junction Remodelling £1,783,802

Utilities Diversions £500,000

Optimisation Bias Uplift (44%) £1,004,872

Total £3,288,674

Revised Total (*1.5 average uplift from 02/2013 audit) £4,933,011

Total scheme cost: £4.933 million LTB contribution £4.433 million (89%) Local Contribution package £0.500 million (11%)

Please provide the total outturn cost and a breakdown of the outturn cost by forecast future years. 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total £0.56m £4,37m £4.93m When were the costs of the scheme last updated? 12/02/2013 Have costs been independently checked? Originally Generated by WSP 2009 Audited by NCC TS 2010 Detailed re-evaluation of some elements leading to average uplift of 1.5. February 2013 Have scheme costs included an adjustment for risk? Optimism Bias included What price base was the original cost was developed in? 2009 What inflation assumptions have been made to the present None, costs revised day and for the forecasting of future years?

What is the level of funding you are requesting from the LTB?

2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total £0.5m £3.93m £4.93m

What is the funding gap between the latest outturn cost and the cost to the LTB?

2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total £0.06m £0.44m 0 0 £0.5m

What is the potential for Local Authority contributions?

2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total £0.06m £0.44m £0.5m

What is the potential for developer contributions?

Provide a brief narrative on the source of these contributions.

Developer contributions factored within the local contribution given S106 funding already held. Additional funding secured through the planning process to mitigate in this area will be aligned. 2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total

What is the potential for funding from other funding pots and budgets?

Please specify bid or budget details.

2015/16 2016/17 2017/18 2018/19 Total 0 0 0 0

Operating costs What are the likely operating costs of the scheme?

Adopted Highway

Level of design Include a narrative on what work to date has been undertaken on the scheme design Initial designs have been undertaken on the component parts of this scheme. We have a complete package of preferred measures for the scheme, drawn to 1:1000 scale or better, made available in a range of electronic formats including PDF files. For the large elements of the work full geomatic surveys have been undertake as well as an audit of the consultant generated cost schedule. We developed and validated a base model of the Gosforth High Street and Haddricks Mill corridors using the micro-simulation software, S-Paramics. The validated base model was then used to develop and test a range of options prior to the final development of the preferred option. The base model was built using traffic and queue data collected specifically for this project, other available data held by the Tyne & Wear Traffic Data and Accident Unit (TADU) and site observations/surveys.

Extents of the Model Regents Centre Haddricks Mill Roundabouts

Church Rd/ Salters Rd Four Lane Ends

Bluehouse Roundabout The model was developed for two assessment periods, namely the morning and evening weekday peak periods. For the morning peak period the model was developed for the time period 0700 – 1000, with 0730 – 0900 representing the peak period. In the evening peak period the time period 1500 – 1900 was modelled with 1630 – 1800 representing the peak period. A full LMVR is available.

Please tick as appropriate Options testing Preliminary/outline design Detailed design  

Funding compliance

Funding will be compliant with Managing Public Money (May 2012 HMT)

What risks have been identified with regard to this option?

Risk Risk rating How will this risk be managed or 1 (low risk) to mitigated? 5 (high risk) Scheme already received Council Consultation 1 approval. Localised consultation will be required during design process Outline costs only calculated at this stage. The scheme is subject to Cost 3 detailed design. Contingency costs will be included within the cost estimate The need for statutory undertakers’ plant Utilities 3 diversion will pose risks to the programme. The need for mitigation will be considered as part of detailed design although allowance has been made within the cost estimate It must be stressed that almost all of the works will take place inside existing highway boundaries which will limit the risk The scheme will be designed and constructed using in-house resources. Any procurement that needs to take place will be for externally manufactured equipment and materials. Procurement Delivery 2 arrangements to be reviewed. Consideration will be given to how schemes will be delivered and the need to avoid over-reliance on single source supply chain

No legal powers / statutory processes required. All works are to be undertaken Legal Issues 1 within the existing highway boundary land or land owned by Newcastle City Council

Programme/Implementation timetable Provide a plan with key milestones and progress including critical path. Milestone Expected Completion Date Development of the supporting scheme July 2014 documentation including strategic case and value for money assessment Award construction contract December 2014 Detailed Design March 2015 Undertaking of surveys June 2015 Construction January 2017 Scheme Opening January 2017

Practical

Haddricks Mill Double mini Roundabouts

The Baseline report highlights that Haddricks Mill Roundabout has a number of problems including congestion and inadequate facilities for public transport, pedestrians and cyclists. It was also highlighted as having particular problems with collisions and is identified as Cluster Site 5. Haddricks Mill is a heavily trafficked double mini roundabout layout. The two roundabouts are separated by a short section of road that crosses the Ouseburn over a culvert which restricts the number of lanes between the junctions. The junction is confusing to navigate and is poorly signed and lined on the approaches. It is often avoided by local drivers who choose to take alternative routes.

Pedestrian Facilities There are controlled pedestrian crossings on all approaches to the junction except on the residential Hunters Road. Five of these crossings are set back from the junction to try and avoid interaction with the roundabouts but these crossings are away from the pedestrian desire lines. The remaining two crossings (Station Road and Haddricks Mill Road) are located very close to the giveway line and their operation has a negative impact on the capacity of the interchange. Cycling Facilities The current high volume of traffic using the junction and the narrow lane widths make on road cycling a very unattractive option. Pavements are present throughout the junction with pedestrian crossing facilities integrated within the signal control. However, none of the controlled crossings provide adequate space or facilities for cyclists. The existing pavement widths are currently only suitable for pedestrian use. ACCIDENTS A total of 32 slight personal injury collisions were recorded at this roundabout and the site has been identified as Cluster Site 5. 16 collisions occurred where the driver failed to give way and four cyclist collisions occurred at the roundabout.

Operational performance

There is congestion during peak periods on all approaches. Station Road and Haddricks Mill Road queue extensively in both morning and evening peaks.

Station Road and Haddricks Mill Road have the highest pedestrian flows at the two pedestrian crossings, sited within a very short distance from the roundabout giveway lines. These giveway lines are often unoccupied due to the pedestrian crossings, leaving vehicles unable to fully utilise the potential capacity of the roundabouts.

Existing Vehicle Delay at Haddricks Mill Practical reserve Delay capacity PCU/Hr Morning -141.4% 421.1 Evening -46.0% 203.2 An option was developed to address the congestion, provide bus priority and incorporate enhanced facilities for both pedestrians and cyclists. This option aimed to provide an intermediate option which uses, where possible, the available carriageway space across the culvert and requires minimal land take. • The west roundabout would be replaced by a signalised junction. By creating a signalised junction at this point a left turn only must be enforced out of Hunters Road. The existing pedestrian crossing on Station Road immediately adjacent to the junction would be removed with controlled crossing near Audley Road providing the main controlled crossing point on Station Road. There is scope within the design for this crossing to be relocated closer to the junction provided linking between the signals is installed to control when the pedestrian crossing can be called. • Staggered crossings would be provided on Haddricks Mill Road and Freeman Road, with an additional crossing provided across the central splitter island on the culvert. The crossing on Killingworth Road would remain at its existing location and those on Benton Park Road would be relocated within the new road layout. • The pavement on the North side of the culvert would be removed to allow the additional lane to be added. • The eastern roundabout would be significantly enlarged to make maximum use of the available space at the western end of the junction and to provide the necessary stacking room at the roundabout internal stoplines. Some land take is required from the grassed area to the south east of the junction. The benefits of the option include: • It provides a significant reduction in vehicle delay; • all approaches except the residential Hunters Road are signalised removing the need for drivers to give way; • the signalisation would allow the signal timings to be used to gate and control traffic onto either of the two Gosforth corridors; • it provides pedestrian facilities across most arms, other arms have existing crossing set back away from the junction; and • the cycle time is low to allow effective internal coordination which benefits pedestrian delay times. Preferred Option Vehicle Delay at Haddricks Mill Practical reserve Delay capacity PCU/Hr Morning 1.2% 50.3 Evening 5.2% 34.4

Technology

It is expected that the signals introduced as part of this will be SCOOT enabled. In addition they will form part of a Gosforth to Benton signal corridor. Tactical control of this SCOOT region will be undertaken by Newcastle’s UTC server. Full strategic control will come from Newcastle’s UTMC controller via Siemens RMS and existing UTC control protocols. This corridor forms part of better bus corridor work which undertakes to use the UTMC system to improve PT operations along this corridor by giving priority to PT at junctions.

By utilising the UTMC system, bus priority can be enhanced using roster and AVL information from the operators AVL servers. A SIRI interface for this purpose has already been installed on the UTMC server.

Legal powers How certain are you of the legal feasibility of the option? Include a narrative on the legal feasibility of the option including any issues around statutory powers, planning permissions and land ownership

Have the required statutory powers been granted? Yes Are there planning implications? Yes Is all the land within scheme promoter ownership? Yes

Quality of supporting evidence for the scheme

Major Scheme Business Case (developed in 2009) Sustrans Bid for Cycle Safety Grant funding Local Pinch Point bid for Cowgate junction S106 Agreements – Local Development Framework Modelling report

GRIP Stage (if appropriate)

Not a rail scheme

Resource availability/governance, organisational structure and roles Summarise the overall approach for project management at this stage of the project. Describe the key roles, lines of accountability and how they are resourced. The Project management system is as follows: Gate 1 Mandate: The appropriate Programme Board must take ‘ownership’ of a project idea, confirming that it is inline with their objectives and current priorities, and commissioning the next stage of project development work. For this scheme, the Programme Board is called the Highways ,Transport and Traffic Management Board. It is Chaired by the Assistant Director of Development – Harvey Emms. It is vice-chaired by the Head of Highways and Maintenance Operations – Peter Gray.

Gate 2 Proposal: The Board must confirm they are satisfied with: - strategic fit; - other options (is the proposed project the best way to meet objectives); - the level of risk likely to be associated with the project; and - satisfaction that all possible implications for the Council are being investigated.

Gate 3 Business Case The Board must consider and sign off the Business Case – ensuring that the project has been properly thought through and planned. The Business Case includes the following key elements: Options Appraisal - Clear, measurable objectives - Weighted evaluation criteria - Options for intervention - Robust cost estimates (including whole life costs) - Value for money analysis Delivery Planning - Confirm scope and exclusions - Product / output definition - Timescales and stages - Resource requirements (capital and revenue) - Funding plan - Project team / structure - Risk log Consultation and Engagement - Stakeholder analysis - Member involvement - Partnership arrangements - Governance, reporting and approvals

Gate 4 Start up Gate 5 Delivery and monitoring Gate 6 Close.

The key roles at this point relate to the Project Board specifically established to oversee the development of the scheme and report through the appropriate internal .major projects governance (included as an Appendix) The role of the project board will be to oversee the delivery of the project, to monitor costs and risks and to ensure that it meets the objectives of the delivery partners. A Project Manager for the development of the scheme has been appointed and it will be their job to report progress, issues, risks and the financial position to the project board on a monthly basis. Any additional specialist support will be sourced externally if required. The primary responsibilities of the Project Board will be to: • provide the overall strategic direction and vision for the project; • commit and retain the required resources to deliver the project; • be accountable for the overall success and delivery of the project; • approve project plans and authorise specific deliverables and commencement and sign-off of project stages; • resolve any conflicts or issues that are escalated to Project Board level; • consider any diversions/exceptions to the project plan and approve any change requests once they have been approved by the designated change approval board; • monitor the progress and the organisational impacts of the project; • empower the core project team to make decisions; • generate timely decisions, supporting the Project Manager to accomplish the project goals; and • monitor communications and provide appropriate advice on disseminating information about the project internally and externally. The role of the Board will change in emphasis over the course of the project during three key phases: Pre-construction In the initial bidding and preparatory stage, the Board’s role is limited to general oversight, as substantive work will not have started. Approval of the bid submission and of the Council’s acceptance of its responsibilities will pass through the Board, although it will not be the ultimate source of responsibility for signing-off these aspects. The pre-construction stage is the point where true project inception takes place. The Board will: • formally approve the project organisation, as set out in this document; • formally approve the project controls, tolerances and quality plan; • formally approve project budgets; • approve all subcontract arrangements as may be needed; • approve the Project Initiation Document; and • commence its regular cycle of meetings. Delivery The ongoing work of the Board will encompass: • provision of overall direction to the project, referring to its progress against programme; • end stage reviews and approval of progress to the next stage; • review and approval of any Exception Plans; • approval of new contract arrangements as may be necessary; • conflict resolution; • reporting any departures from agreed programme, scope or cost ; and • formal approval of changes to key documents and processes. Project closedown Once the project is complete, the Board will: • confirm that all products have been delivered satisfactorily and that the expected benefits can be realised; • provide assurance that all Acceptance Criteria have been met; • approve final project budgets and determine any remedial strategy (if needed); • approve the End of Project report to the Council; • determine the need for follow-on actions and the passage of these to the appropriate Council decision makers; • initiation of the Benefits Evaluation strategy; • approves any formal opening arrangements; and • formally accepts the scheme on behalf of the Council. The Project Manager will ensure that the project team meets on a regular basis and will be responsible for the day to day management of the site works. This will facilitate progress monitoring and rapid delivery of the scheme. Decision making will be delegated to the lowest level appropriate, e.g. the majority of the construction contracts Project Manager powers would be delegated to the site supervisor.

Stakeholders and Public Acceptability Include a narrative on public and stakeholder acceptability including discussion of any consultation that has taken place to date, issues around stakeholder acceptability, issues around public acceptability and what further public consultation is likely to be required.

A significant program of consultation has taken place involving all household in the affected wards. We have contacted over 40,000 homes in the Gosforth Area and held drop in sessions and ward committee information sessions. We have also carried out extensive stated preference street surveys and revealed preference surveys. A report on public consultation is available on request.

Statutory Consultees (HA, Env Agency, Natural England) Include a narrative on specific engagement or discussions with statutory consultees, identifying any issues noted around acceptability and what further consultation is likely to be required with the statutory consultees. All local stakeholders will be engaged with and formal consultation will take place at the appropriate stages in scheme development.

Our comprehensive list of stakeholders will continue to be refined and developed as the engagement plan unfolds but as a starting point we will seek to establish clear lines of communication with:

- MP’s and elected members - Relevant Project Boards and officer working groups - Strategic Partners – NE1, Chamber of Commerce, Federation of Small Businesses, public service providers. - Individual businesses - The travelling public - Taxi operators - Bus operators - Pedestrian groups like Living Streets - Cyclists – individuals and organised lobby groups - Disability / accessibility groups - Communities of Interest and identity – Elders Council etc - Shoppers - Residents of the City Centre - Experts and thinkers - Students - Workers - Large Employers - Leisure users - Freight handlers - Refuse collectors and other building service companies - Utility providers - Emergency services.

In each case, we will establish the view they currently hold, we will decide on a procedure to engage them or exploit an existing procedure for engaging them and select an appropriate method depending on why we contacting them – we will also prepare a method for collecting, managing and interpreting their feedback alongside that.

Value for money

BCR 5.5 In accordance with the DfT Guidance on Value for We believe that this scheme conforms with the Money, the Gosforth High Street and Haddricks average BCR for the full package of works Mill environmental, transit and road safety outlined in the 2009/10 bid documents. There scheme proposals can be classified as VERY were significant elements of the whole bid that HIGH value for money with a BCR greater than 2 were not generating travel time savings whereas of 5.5 this stripped out element contains significant potential travel time savings for all road users.

Evaluation Summarise outline arrangements for monitoring and evaluating the intervention

Benefit evaluation An outline process for evaluating the benefits of the scheme is set out below. Defining and locking-in the benefits is a vital part of the development. The underlying logic of evaluation is based on the answers to these questions: 1. Why the benefit was identified (how does it relate to local policy and targets)? 2. How the success of the implemented measure in achieving the desired benefit can be measured and reviewed? 3. What overlaps are there between the desired benefits and any sequence/dependencies between them? 4. What are the risks associated with realising the benefit?

An evaluation framework can be developed. A five stage process will be adopted: • based on the overall vision for the scheme, the key outcomes that should be realised from the transport interventions will be identified. These will be expressed as either targets or trends, related to a specified timescale. The principle of SMART objectives will be used to guide this process; • the elements of the strategy will be related to the key outcomes. Successful delivery of the desired benefits will be essential if the overall vision is to be realised; • the targets and indicators for the scheme will then be defined. Not all scheme elements may need to have a related target, with only the establishment of a satisfactory ‘direction of travel’ being the desired and satisfactory effect. Where interdependency exists between scheme elements, cross-cutting indicators will be developed; • a programme of data collection will take place to support the evaluation strategy; and • the final stage of benefit evaluation concerns the key issue of placing values against the monitoring data as related back to the scheme objectives. This is a matter of deciding whether the desired trend was established or target met (a simple binary judgement, either ‘yes’ or ‘no’), followed by interpretation of situations where no clear picture develops, or where the ‘goalposts moved’ changing the whole nature of the evaluation exercise.

In practical terms each sequence will be as follows: 1. Data gathering; Data sources can be split into 2 categories; Automatic and derived. Automatic data will be the use of data from signals and ATC units placed at strategic points in the network and around the junction. Other automatic sources include data sets from our UTMC system and the Stats 19 database. Derived data sets will be housing completions, employment statistics and local GVA. 2. Determination of trends; Both data sets will be recorded and examined, for example the recording of traffic data sets, i.e. ADT AADT etc. It could equally be housing completions per annum 3. Determination of progress, i.e. trend against programme or trend against target; monitoring flow levels at peak and inter peak. 4. Comparison with data from similar junctions in Tyne and Wear without the benefits of improvement.; 5. Conclude evaluation; and report annually through LTP monitoring or any externally nominated regime. Appendix 1 - Major Projects Governance

Project Management System Gateways

PMS Gateway Activity Details

Stages and Gateways

Uncommitted Committed

1 2 3 4 5 6 Processes Mandate Proposal Business Case Start-Up Delivery Close

Outcomes Options appraisal Objectives & (implement) Follow-on Project planning Outputs Scope & activities Project Plan targets Project Plan actions Outline timetable Stages/milestones

Resource Resource Project Budget(s) Cost Codes Budget Budget requirements management Funding plan Project team monitoring reconciliation Funding options

Risk High level Risk identification Risk analysis Risk control Residual

management risk review & description  Risk register & monitoring risks

(implement) Stakeholder Stakeholder Stakeholder Communications Review and Communications management identification analysis plan feedback plan

Corporate Issues log Lessons Project controls Lessons learned Project Initiation considerations Document (PID) Change requests (to be) learned

Risk & Impact Project structure Project Board, Governance and Traffic light End project Assessment and approvals DPB, IDG, Reporting reports report  Project category (inc. Members) Members

Appendix 2 – Risk Register

Appendix 3 – Consultation report

Appendix 4 – Indicative Scheme Designs