THE vital public inquiry into the planned A5 Dunstable northern bypass has finally drawn to a close.
Now supporters and objectors face a nail-biting wait for the verdict.
Planning inspector David Wildsmith spearheaded the inquiry.
The bypass would be a 2.9-mile dual carriageway, running east from the A5 north of Dunstable to link to the M1 at a new junction, 11A.
In the Highways Agency’s lengthy closing statement, barrister Christopher Lewsley pointed out: “If there is such a thing as a highways scheme that is all benefit, I can only say that I have never encountered one.
“It is generally a matter of balancing pluses and minuses and forming a judgement as to where the overall balance lies in the public interest. This scheme is no exception to that general rule.”
He detailed the expected benefits of the scheme and the agency’s view on a number of objections and suggested alternatives.
The barrister concluded: “There is a compelling case that the acquisition of the land and rights included in the Orders is necessary in the public interest and any interference with human rights is justified.”
A number of objectors pressed for local access at Junction 11A. Mr Lewsley said this was the main point of objection. He said providing local access at Junction 11A was not one of the aims of the bypass scheme.
But the agency had no objection in principle to that access being provided by local highways authority-promoted major local road schemes.
“Junction 11A has been designed so that it is capable of modification to enable those major local road schemes to connect in. The Highways Agency’s view is that this is the best and the quickest way of getting appropriate local access at Junction 11A,” he said.
Visit www.persona.uk.com/A5dunstable/index.htm to view documents from supporters and objectors.
One objector wrote: “Improving the A5 with a bypass of Dunstable A5 to A5 (rather than A5 to M1) would be better for Bedfordshire.
“An A5 to A5 bypass of Dunstable would provide an alternative for north-south traffic and a welcome reduction of M1 and minor road traffic flows. The A5 already has an excellent section at Milton Keynes, but both Dunstable and Hockliffe persist as the bottlenecks.
“The proposed A5-M1 bypass fails to solve these core problems in the Bedfordshire road system.”
Details of the bypass scheme are available at www.highways.gov.uk.