Planning application approved for “vitally important” junction improvements in Chelmsford
The £81 million Army and Navy Sustainable Transport Package includes walking, cycling, bus and Park and Ride improvements to encourage safer, greener and healthier travel.
Plans to transform a vital gateway in Chelmsford were approved today (Friday 22 November).
Essex County Council has developed the proposed Army and Navy Sustainable Transport Package. It includes a hamburger roundabout (a new roundabout with a road through the centre of it) at the city’s Army and Navy junction.
There will be bus priority measures and walking and cycling improvements at the junction, as well as on the approaches to and from the roundabout.
The package will also see expansions of both the Sandon Park and Ride and Chelmer Valley Park and Ride sites.
In October last year, the Department for Transport (DfT) confirmed the outline business case for the project had been approved. It is being funded through the DfT's Major Road Network (MRN) programme.
Three separate planning applications have now been approved. These include one for the Army and Navy junction and one each for the Park and Ride expansions. The applications were approved by the development and regulation committee at a meeting today (Friday 22 November).
Based on calculations made for the outline business case, average journey times through the new junction are modelled to be:
- 44% quicker for people cycling
- 40% quicker for buses
- 53% quicker for motorised vehicles
- 11% quicker for people walking through the junction at ground level
Councillor Lesley Wagland OBE, Essex County Council’s Deputy to the Deputy Leader with principal accountabilities on Major Infrastructure Projects and Freeports, said: “The Army and Navy Sustainable Transport Package will deliver enormous benefits; improving journey times for buses, pedestrians, cyclists and general traffic, reducing delays and supporting economic growth in the area.
“It will also help provide better options for people to travel in and around the city, especially for shorter journeys where we want walking or cycling to be the natural choice.
“While we recognise the government has commissioned a review of all current and future Department for Transport-funded projects, we are as committed as ever to delivering this transformational scheme as soon as possible.
“The Army and Navy Sustainable Transport Package has a very good business case and it remains a vitally important project for Chelmsford, Essex and the wider region.”
Marie Goldman MP, Member of Parliament for Chelmsford, said: “The Army and Navy is a major junction in the heart of Chelmsford. Not only should its redevelopment improve car journey times, but the sustainable travel improvements for walking, cycling and buses are crucial to helping Chelmsford residents travel safely by alternative means.
“I hope the new government will recognise the importance of this infrastructure and ensure that it eventually receives the funding it needs to go ahead.”
Based on the current programme, which assumes the necessary land needed for the project can be obtained through negotiations with the owners, construction is expected to start in 2027. It is expected to be completed in 2029. This will be subject to securing final funding and other processes and approvals.
For more information about the Army and Navy Sustainable Transport Package and to sign up for the project e-newsletter, visit www.essex.gov.uk/armyandnavy.