Report to the Secretary of State for Transport and to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government by I Jenkins BSc CEng MICE MCIWEM An Inspector appointed by the Secretary of State for Transport and the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Date: 30 April 2014 HIGHWAYS ACT 1980 ACQUISITION OF LAND ACT 1981 THE A1 MOTORWAY (SCOTCH CORNER TO BARTON CONNECTING ROADS) SCHEME 20.. THE A1 MOTORWAY (DISHFORTH TO BARTON SUPPLEMENTARY APPROPRIATION) ORDER No.2 20.. THE A66 TRUNK ROAD (SCOTCH CORNER JUNCTION TO VIOLET GRANGE FARM) ORDER 20.. THE A1 MOTORWAY (DISHFORTH TO BARTON SUPPLEMENTARY SIDE ROADS) ORDER No.4 20.. THE A1 MOTORWAY (DISHFORTH TO BARTON SECTION) SUPPLEMENTARY COMPULSORY PURCHASE ORDER No.5 (No MP .. ) 20.. Inquiries: 4-6 and 10 February 2014 Ref: DPI/P2745/13/24 REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FILE REF: DPI/P2745/13/24 ___________________________________________________________________________________________ TABLE OF CONTENTS CASE DETAILS ............................................................................................... 1 1 PREAMBLE ............................................................................................... 2 2 DESCRIPTION OF THE SITE AND ITS SURROUNDINGS .................................. 6 3 LEGAL/PROCEDURAL SUBMISSIONS ........................................................... 7 4 THE CASE FOR THE HIGHWAYS AGENCY ..................................................... 7 5 THE CASE FOR THE SUPPORTERS ............................................................. 21 6 THE CASE FOR THE OBJECTORS ............................................................... 24 7 THE CASE FOR THE COUNTER OBJECTORS ................................................ 33 8 REBUTTAL BY THE HIGHWAYS AGENCY ..................................................... 38 9 CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................... 49 10 RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................ 64 APPENDICES ............................................................................................... 65 REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FILE REF: DPI/P2745/13/24 ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 1 CASE DETAILS The A1 Motorway (Scotch Corner to Barton Connecting Roads) Scheme 20.. would be made under sections 16, 17 and 19 of the Highways Act 1980. The draft Scheme was published on 18 July 2013, and there were 3 duly made objections outstanding to it at the commencement of the local Inquiries. Summary of Recommendation(s): I recommend that the Scheme be made. The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Supplementary Appropriation) Order No. 2 20.. would be made under section 18 of the Highways Act 1980. The draft Order was published on 18 July 2013, and there were 3 duly made objections outstanding to it at the commencement of the local Inquiries. Summary of Recommendation(s): I recommend that the Order be made. The A66 Trunk Road (Scotch Corner Junction to Violet Grange Farm) Order 20.. would be made under sections 10 and 41 of the Highways Act 1980. The draft Order was published on 18 July 2013, and there were 3 duly made objections outstanding to it at the commencement of the local Inquiries. Summary of Recommendation(s): I recommend that the Order be made. The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Supplementary Side Roads) Order No. 4 20.. would be made under sections 12, 18 and 125 of the Highways Act 1980. The draft Order was published on 18 July 2013, and there were 5 duly made objections outstanding to it at the commencement of the local Inquiries. Summary of Recommendation(s): I recommend that the Order be made. The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Section) Supplementary Compulsory Purchase Order No. 5 (No MP ..) 20.. would be made under sections 239, 240, 246 and 260 of the Highways Act 1980 as extended and supplemented by section 250 of the Act and under section 2 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981. The draft Order was published on 18 July 2013, and there were 4 duly made objections outstanding to it at the commencement of the local Inquiries. Summary of Recommendation(s): I recommend that the Order be made, subject to certain modifications set out below. 1 REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FILE REF: DPI/P2745/13/24 ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 2 PREAMBLE 2.1 The Inquiries and site visits 2.1.1 I have been appointed by the Secretary of State for Transport and the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (the Secretaries of State) to conduct concurrent Inquiries for the purpose of hearing representations and objections concerning the draft Scheme and Orders. I held those Inquiries at the Holiday Inn, Scotch Corner on the 4-6 and 10 February 2014. I carried out an accompanied site visit on 4 February 2014 and unaccompanied site visits on the 3 and the 11 February 2014. 2.2 Purpose of the Scheme and Orders 2.2.1 The draft Scheme and Orders, which together comprise the ‘proposed scheme’, have been published as part of an on-going project to improve and upgrade the A1 between Dishforth and Barton. The Highways Agency (HA), as an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport (DfT), is responsible for managing, maintaining and improving the trunk road and motorway network and aims to ensure that it is safe, efficient, reliable and environmentally acceptable. As part of those duties, it has been promoting the necessary Schemes and Orders required to facilitate the Dishforth to Barton project. 2.2.2 A draft Scheme and Orders were published for the full Dishforth to Barton project in March 2006. A public inquiry was held in October 2006. Following receipt of the Inspector’s report1, the Secretaries of State issued a decision letter on 31 March 20082. At that time, the project contained no provision for a local access road (LAR) between Scotch Corner and Barton. Objectors had sought such provision and objected to the draft Scheme and Orders on that basis. 2.2.3 The Secretaries of State, in their 2008 decision letter, decided that the failure to provide a LAR between Scotch Corner and Barton was unsatisfactory. Whilst making Orders for other sections, the Secretaries of State required further investigation of what were then LAR Objectors’ Alternatives 23 and 24 (OA23 and OA24). The HA evaluated routes OA23 and OA24 and prepared a report, after consultation with key stakeholders, summarising the assessments and recording its decision that a route based on OA24 provides best value for money and would be progressed3. 2.2.4 The following is a brief description of the draft Scheme and Orders and 1 O6. 2 O7. 3 M3. 2 REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FILE REF: DPI/P2745/13/24 ___________________________________________________________________________________________ what they seek to achieve: a) The A1 Motorway (Scotch Corner to Barton Connecting Roads) Scheme 20.. 4. The draft Scheme, if made, would fix the line of the on and off slip roads from the A66 Trunk Road to the upgraded A1 from the north side of the existing Scotch Corner junction. It would also provide for the slip roads to be special roads. b) The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Supplementary Appropriation) Order 20.. 5. The effect of this Order would be to appropriate the connecting roads provided as part of the Scheme as part of the special road which Secretary of State would be authorised to provide as part of the larger A1 improvement scheme. c) The A66 Trunk Road (Scotch Corner Junction to Violet Grange Farm) Order 20.. 6. This Order would provide for the construction of a new length of trunk road from the northwestern side of the A66 Scotch Corner junction and a new roundabout at the northern end of that new length of trunk road, in order to provide access onto the A1. It would also provide access onto the LAR, to private property and to the VOSA facility in that location. d) The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Supplementary Side Roads) Order No.4 20.. (SRO)7. This Order would provide for the improvement of highways, stopping up of highways, construction of new highways, the stopping up of private means of access and the provision of new private means of access and for the transfer of new highways to North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC) as local highway authority. It is this draft Order which would facilitate the provision of the LAR. e) The A1 Motorway (Dishforth to Barton Section) Supplementary Compulsory Purchase Order No.5 (No MP..) 20.. (CPO)8. This Order would have the effect of authorising the Secretary of State for Transport to compulsorily acquire the interests in and rights over land which are necessary to deliver the overall project to which the Scheme and other Orders relate. 4 A1. 5 A2. 6 A3. 7 A4. 8 A6. 3 REPORT TO THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR TRANSPORT AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT FILE REF: DPI/P2745/13/24 ___________________________________________________________________________________________ 2.3 Objections to the Scheme and Orders 2.3.1 Of the 10 duly made objections, 5 remained at the start of the Inquiries. The details are as follows: Statutory objector