Business and Environmental Services

A responsive County Council providing excellent and efficient local services

A684 Bedale, Aiskew

and Leeming Bar bypass

If you have any queries or wish to send comments, please contact...

Telephone: Customer Service Centre on 0845 8 72 73 74

Fax: 01609 779838

Email: BALB@northyorks.gov.uk

Post: A684 BALB

North Yorkshire County Council

Business and Environmental Services

County Hall

Northallerton

DL7 8AH

If you would like this information in another language or format

such as braille, large print or audio, please ask us.

Tel: 01609 532917

Email: communications@northyorks.gov.uk

Reference: B003 08/09

?

Background to the current consultation

In 1995 a public consultation on the

route options for a bypass to the

north of Bedale, Aiskew and

Leeming Bar (BALB) was carried

out. As a result, a route was

selected. Some minor changes have

been made to the route since that

time.

Further progress of the A684 BALB

scheme is dependent on finance

being made available by the

Government and on the A1(M)

upgrade. The A1(M) upgrade started

construction in April 2009.

Following the Government’s

approval of the scheme to upgrade

the A1, the Regional Transport Board gave support to the County Council’s bid to

include A684 BALB as a regional priority. As a result of this, the County Council is

currently in discussion with the Department for Transport to secure funding for the

scheme.

How are the effects of the bypass being

assessed?

All roads impact on the environment that they pass through; a major consideration

in the design of the bypass will be to balance the need for the road and the

sympathetic treatment of the surrounding area.

To help in the process, the Council has commissioned a number of surveys and

studies including:

l ecological studies, for example for bats and trees;

l a mapping survey of the existing surface and features;

l an investigation into the ground beneath the bypass;

l an archaeological survey;

l noise and visual impact assessments; and

l the effects on farm holdings.

Some of this work is still ongoing, but the initial findings have already been used to

reduce the effect of the road on the landscape. As more information becomes

available it will be used to further reduce the road’s impact.

When will the bypass be built and will it

be good value for money?

Since the A684 BALB cannot be built until the new A1(M) Leeming junction is

completed, the construction of the bypass is currently programmed to start in

October 2012 and to be completed within two years.

It is forecast that the bypass will cost approximately £35 million. Using standard

calculations for putting a money value to the benefits of the scheme, it has been

calculated that the benefits outweigh the costs by roughly four to one. Typically,

the Department for Transport considers funding schemes at two to one, so A684

BALB represents very good value for money.

How can I find out more and comment

on the proposals?

Consultation on the proposed bypass is being carried out over a 12 week period.

The consultation aims to engage with the public, as well as statutory consultees,

stakeholders, and other interested groups.

First of all, the County Council have arranged exhibitions where you will be able

to view the detail of the proposals. You will also have the opportunity to discuss

the proposed bypass with staff from the County Council and the consultants

appointed to carry out the design.

The venues, dates and times of the exhibitions are given below:

Additionally you can also access information and participate in the consultation

on the Council’s web site at www.northyorks.gov.uk/balb

The exhibitions and online consultation are your opportunity to have your

say. Your views are important and will be considered along with those of

other members of the public and organisations.

After the exhibitions, once we have considered the issues and comments raised,

we will send you further details and a questionnaire. We will ensure that you have

this information in time for you to respond within the 12 week period. All opinions

will be considered before we start on the legal processes.

Next stepsThe results of the questionnaires will be considered by the County Council prior

to a planning application being submitted. Additionally, we will start preparing to

undertake the legal processes including Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) and

the Side Road Order (SRO). The CPO provides the County Council with the

authority to purchase the land necessary for the scheme and the SRO allows the

modification of the highway network, for example to “stop up” (close) highways

and create new roads and rights of way.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Exhibition Venue 1 Bedale - Market Place (Mobile display vehicle)10.00am - 7.00pm Friday 18th September 2009

10.00am - 4.00pm Saturday 19th September 2009

Exhibition Venue 2 Leeming Bar - Aiskew & Leeming Primary School10.00am - 4.00pm Saturday 26th September 2009

Exhibition Venue 3 Aiskew - Methodist Hall

12.30pm - 3.30pm Friday 2nd October 20097.00pm - 8.30pm Friday 2nd October 2009

Parking available to

the rear of St Mary

and St Joseph Church

The new road will start at a roundabout near

Bedale Golf Club and head north-eastwards

across farmland towards Rectory Wood. The road will

pass through the wood crossing Bedale Beck and the

Wensleydale Railway on a new bridge.

The road will continue north-eastwards. The road

cannot be completely out of sight because it needs

to stay above the floodplain of Bedale Beck and Scurf

Beck, and also cross over an existing pipeline.

The road will pass through the southern edge of Sand

Hill Plantation, away from Sand Hill Farm, and continue

in a straight line through open farmland. This route enables

opportunities for overtaking on the bypass, which helps to make it

attractive as an alternative route for through traffic. There will be a

low point on this section of the bypass and a storage pond will be

created to control rainwater run-off from the road into Bedale Beck.

After passing to the north-west of Aiskew Grange, the road turns

eastwards and will connect with a new roundabout being constructed

for the A1(M) Leeming Junction. This roundabout will also provide connections

to a local access road, which is being provided as part of the A1(M) scheme, to

maintain access to farms, homes and villages to the north and south.

The bypass will make use of an underbridge at the A1(M) junction to take it

beneath the motorway to a second roundabout on the east side, which

connects with new A1(M) southbound slip roads.

The eastern half of the bypass starts at this roundabout and heads north-

eastwards. At this point it passes between Leeming Bar Industrial Estate

and Fairfield Farm. The route will then meet Leases Road where there will be a

new roundabout to provide connections to Leases Road and Low Street.

Continuing eastwards the bypass will be on a shallow embankment, passing

along the south side of the field below Argyll House and just north of Ashville.

The bypass will then cut across Low Street but there will be no connection for

vehicles at that point. However, it is proposed that pedestrians, horses and cyclists

will still be able to cross the bypass at this point. It is also proposed to construct

landscape mounds on the north side of the bypass along this section.

The bypass will begin to curve to the right to head eastwards across open

farmland. A second storage pond will be created for rainwater run-off from

the road.

A new bridge will carry the bypass over the Wensleydale Railway to a new

roundabout on the A684 Northallerton Road, where there will be a third

storage pond.

What is the purpose of this leaflet?

This leaflet provides information about the proposed A684 Bedale, Aiskew and

Leeming Bar bypass, known as A684 BALB. It also gives details of where you can

find further information.

This is the first stage of the consultation process and over the next few weeks there

will be opportunities for you to give your views and comments about the proposals.

Why is a bypass needed?

Users of the existing A684, which goes through the communities of Bedale,

Aiskew and Leeming Bar, regularly experience problems with traffic congestion,

road safety and access to outlying areas.

The proposed bypass would provide several benefits including:

l reducing traffic congestion in the communities bypassed by the proposed scheme. For example, the average daily traffic flow on the

A684 through this area is approximately 14,000 vehicles per day. A

bypass would remove approximately half of this traffic;

l reducing environmental and road safety problems on the approaches to and through the communities of Bedale, Aiskew and Leeming Bar;

l improving access to the A1(M) from and between communities to the east and west of the A1; and

l improving access to Leeming Bar Industrial Estate.

Where will the new road go?

The whole of the bypass will lie to the north of Bedale, Aiskew and Leeming

Bar. It consists of two new sections of road, split by the A1, with approximately

2.5 kilometres (1.6 miles) on the west side and 1.9 kilometres (1.2 miles) to the

east. The plan on this leaflet shows the proposed route.

BEDALE

LEEMING

BAR

New A1(M) motorway

under construction

including Leeming

Junction

AISKEW

Rectory

Wood

Sand Hill

Plantation

Leeming Bar

Industrial Estate

Bed

ale

Bec

k

Wen

sley

dale

Rai

lway

This map is reproduced from Ordnance Survey material with the permission of

Ordnance Survey on behalf of the Controller of her Majesty’s Stationary Office © Crown

copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to

prosecution or civil proceedings. North Yorkshire County Council 100017946 (2009).

1

2

3

4

5

6

1

2

3

4

5

67

9

8

7

8

Key to the plan

9

Low Street closed at bypass, traffic diverted

via Leases Road. Access will remain for

pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders.

Bedale Golf

Club

Ashville

Scu

rf B

eck

Holmfield

Farm

Proposed

storage

pond

Proposed

storage

pond

Leem

ing L

ane

Lease

s Road

Lowlands

Existing A

684

Spring

House

A684

Northallerto

n Road

Leeming

Airfield

Aiskew

Grange

Back

Lane

Sand Hill

Farm

Mini-roundabout

Exist

ing

A684

Level Crossing

St Gregory’s

Church

Sports

Ground

A684 to Leyburn

Rand Beck

Low

Stre

et

Fairfield

Farm

Wendsleydale

Railway

Argyll

House

Exhibition Venue 1

Exhibition Venue 2

A1 (M

) Loca

l Acce

ss Road

Exhibition Venue 3

Field House

Proposed

bridge

Proposed

bridge