West of England Combined Authority Full Business Case Programme: Scheme: A4174/Wraxall Road Roundabout Signal Scheme Originated Reviewed Authorised Date Final PRM JL RG 09/03/2020 Executive Summary Wraxall Road (Woodstock) Roundabout is located on the A4174 Avon Ring Road in South Gloucestershire south-east of Kingswood and north-west of Cadbury Heath. The northeast and southwest arms of the roundabout are the dual carriageway A4174. The side-road arms of Wraxall Road Roundabout are Wraxall Road to the northwest and Tower Lane to the southeast. The roundabout currently experiences significant levels of congestion, especially during evening peak times, and this is forecast to become more severe in the future. The Joint Transport Study (JTS) includes proposals for a number of interventions along and connecting to the A4174 including a new motorway interchange at M4 Junction 18a, improvements to Hicks Gate and potentially links to Whitchurch Village and Yate, which will create more pressure on Wraxhall Road as traffic grows. There are also multi modal improvements such as metrobus that would also benefit from the reduced congestion the scheme would bring. Whilst these schemes do not form part of the direct case being presented for the Wraxall Road scheme, they have the potential to significantly increase volumes using the A4174. To compensate for this, a proposal has been made to DfT for funding from the major Route Network fund that would provide complementary improvements along the adjacent sections of the route. This scheme includes wraxhall Road as a locally funded core part of the MRN scheme that forms the match funding for the scheme. In addition High levels of employment and housing growth are also expected in the region. Even though this growth may not be placed in the immediate vicinity of the roundabout, it is predicted to result in a general increase in traffic on this major corridor. The main objectives for the scheme are: To improve traffic flow along the A4174 Ring Road and reduce delays to these arms (A4174 south and north); To improve air quality in the vicinity of the roundabout compared to a Do-Nothing situation; To improve the road safety performance of the roundabout; To maintain capacity, or reduce delays where possible, on Wraxall Road and Tower Road side-road arms; and Facilitate/accommodate growth from housing and other infrastructure schemes. The proposed scheme consists of modification of the existing uncontrolled roundabout layout to a fully signal-controlled ‘through-about’ arrangement. The total cost of this scheme is estimated £6.98million (base year for costs 2020, including inflation). It is expected that construction will start 2020 and be completed by 2022. The proposed scheme improvements can be accommodated within highway boundaries and can be delivered under existing powers held by South Gloucestershire Council. The economic assessment undertaken has monetised the journey benefits and costs of the scheme and suggested that the total present value of benefits (PVB) will be £25.6 million compared to a total present value of costs (PVC) of £5.3million (values based on 2010 prices). This gives a net present value (NPV) of around £20.3 million and a high benefit-cost ratio (BCR) of around 4.9 SGC undertook a public consultation exercise on the proposed improvements to the roundabout between 6 February and 29 March 2019. 139 (60%) of respondents supported the scheme, while 82 (35%) did not, and the remainder didn’t know. The construction phase of the project will be delivered in accordance with SGC’s project management framework, using experience gained from similar highway improvement schemes. 1 Strategic Case This Strategic Case sets out the rationale for the A4174/Wraxall Road (Woodstock) Roundabout Signal Scheme. It builds upon the information presented in the A4174/Wraxall Road Roundabout Signal Scheme Outline Business Case (OBC) which was submitted to the West of England Combined Authorities (WECA) (2018) and the Option Assessment Report (OAR) attached to this Full Business Case (FBC) submission. Whilst there have been changes to the specific assessment tools used for the scheme in response to considerable increase to traffic, as demonstrated in the 2019 counts along the corridor then the underlying assumptions, and traffic flows used for the assessment remains at the same level, although residual capacity of the road limits growth past 2021. As such the economics have changed however the conclusions and proposed scheme assessments from the previous reports remain valid. 1.1 State Aid Considerations South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) is the promoter of the A4174/Wraxall Road Roundabout Signal Scheme. The scheme is considered to be state aid compliant in accordance with details provided in the State Aid: The Basics Guide issued by BIS in July 2015. The proposed project is for improvements to an existing roundabout which forms part of the public highway network. This infrastructure is currently in the ownership of the Local Highway Authority and would remain so following improvements. The proposed improvements would benefit the local highway network and increase network resilience. The table below demonstrates that the scheme does not constitute State Aid. 1. Is the assistance granted by the state or • “Granted by the State” means by any public or through state resources? private body controlled by the state (which, in the UK, means national or local Government). YES • “State resources” is broad: any measure with an impact on the state budget or where the state has significant control are included, for example, tax exemptions, Lottery funding and the EU structural Funds. 2. Does the assistance give an advantage to one • An “undertaking” is any organisation engaged or more undertakings over others? in economic activity. NO - This is about activity rather than legal form, so non-profit organisations, charities and public bodies can all be undertakings, depending on the activities they are involved in. - An undertaking can also include operators and ‘middlemen’ if they benefit from the funding. • “Economic activity” means putting goods or services on a market. It is not necessary to make a profit to be engaged in economic activity: if others in the market offer the same good or service, it is an economic activity. Support to an organisation engaged in a non- economic activity isn’t State aid, e.g. support to individuals through the social security system is not state aid. • An “advantage” can take many forms: not just a grant, loan or tax break, but also use of a state asset for free or at less than market price. Essentially, it is something an undertaking could not get in the normal course of business. 3. Does the assistance distort or have the • If the assistance strengthens the recipient potential to distort competition? relative to its competitors then the answer is likely to be “yes”. No • The “potential to distort competition” does not have to be substantial or significant: may include relatively small amounts of financial support to firms with modest market share. 4. Does the assistance affect trade between The interpretation of this is broad: it is enough Member States that a product or service is tradable between Member States, even if the recipient does not No itself export to other EU Markets. 1.2 Project Description Wraxall Road Roundabout is located on the A4174 Avon Ring Road in South Gloucestershire south- east of Kingswood and north-west of Cadbury Heath (see below). The northern and southern arms of the roundabout are the dual carriageway A4174. The side-road arms of Wraxall Road Roundabout are Wraxall Road to the west and Tower Lane to the east. A4174/Wraxall Road Roundabout Figure 1: Wraxall Roundabout Location (Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2019) To the north the A4174 continues through the A420 Roundabout that provides access to Kingswood and forms a major arterial route into Bristol. Further north the A4174 continues through the East Fringe to the M32 and the A38 beyond that to the west. The A4174 terminates some 3.6km to the south at Hicks Gate Roundabout at the intersection between the A4174 and the A4 with the latter providing a key strategic route into Brislington and Bristol, to the west, and towards Bath in the east. The proposed scheme consists of modification of the existing uncontrolled roundabout layout to a fully signal-controlled ‘through-about’ arrangement. Specifically, it comprises the following elements: Widening of the A4174 approaches to three lanes with four lanes at entry with three lanes providing high capacity for the dominant A4174 through-traffic movement; Provision of a three-lane highway link for A4174 through-traffic across the middle of the roundabout; A merge on exit arrangement for A4174 through-traffic from three lanes to two over a distance of circa 100m; Traffic signals at each entry and conflict point would manage the flow of traffic safely and efficiently. The layout for the scheme is shown on drawings 673847.BJ.35-CH-DR-0001 and 673847.BJ.35-CH-DR- 0002, included in Appendix 1.1. The total cost of this scheme is estimated £6.98million (base year for costs 2020, including inflation). It is expected that construction will start 2020 and be completed by 2022. The planned scheme improvements can be accommodated within highway boundaries. 1.3 Project Objectives and Case for Change Wraxall Road Roundabout currently experiences significant levels of congestion. According to Tom Tom data collected for journey time validation in 2018, delays during weekday evening peak periods on the A4174 southbound approach are nearly one and half minutes, while those on the other approaches are over one minute. Morning peak periods, according to the same dataset, show lower delays of nearly 30 seconds on the side-road arms.