Cramlington and Killingworth MP Emma Foody has confirmed she will continue to make the case for improvements to a ‘crucial’ roundabout despite a National Highways assessment deeming the project ‘poor value for money’.
Ms Foody’s comments come after Northumberland County Council’s deputy leader indicated that the long-planned Moor Farm and Seaton Burn roundabouts could be jeopardised.
Cllr Richard Wearmouth informed members of Northumberland County Council that the project team had’stood down’.
However, it is now recognized that this crew was in charge of carrying out the assessment rather than the actual upgrades.
At this time, no decision has been made on whether to pay the changes, with the assessment due to be reviewed by the Department of Transport.
Ms Foody stated, “Moor Farm Roundabout is critical for mobility, development, and our economy in south-east Northumberland and northeastern North Tyneside. The roundabout is heavily congested and often used, causing major delays for residents and businesses.
“Since being elected in July, I’ve met with the Minister for the Future of Roads, the Highways Agency, and the North East Combined Authority, as well as Northumberland County and North Tyneside Councils, to discuss this issue.
“The Highways Agency have undertaken an assessment on improvements to the roundabout and I have discussed the outcome of this assessment and the methodology used, highlighting the importance of this infrastructure to communities in south east Northumberland and north west North Tyneside.”These assessments have been sent to the government, and I will continue to advocate for improvements to Moor Farm as part of the Road Investment Strategy.
National Highways said that all spending would be subject to a review by the Secretary of State, which meant that the status of any program could not be determined.
At last week’s county council meeting, Cllr Wearmouth stated that he was not ‘especially enthusiastic’ about the outcome of the Department of Transport’s study.
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