Is Middlewich bypass scheme on a road to nowhere?

Preparation works for the bypass had already started

The historic Cheshire town of Middlewich has been a hive of industry ever since the Romans began mining salt there 2,000 years ago.

And while the Romans managed to build two roads that intersected at Middlewich, present day political leaders have found the prospect of building just one a challenging feat.

The case for the Middlewich bypass was made in 2017 and it got planning permission two years later.

But there have been wrangles over the funding, and now the government has rejected the council's latest business plan for it.

For some people in Middlewich, the news is as frustrating as it is unsurprising.

The bypass is set to start off the existing Pochin Way

"Nothing ever gets done in this town, we never get anything," one woman said.

Another described the delay as "quite annoying," adding: "People that make these decisions should come here in the morning and in the evening to see what absolute gridlock it is."

"Middlewich never does get anything at all - it’s always promises, promises, but we never actually get anything," said another.

And the traffic in the area is a concern.

One man said the traffic in the area was "horrible", while another described the town as a "dreadful place for traffic".

'Look again'

The Middlewich Eastern Bypass, to give it its full name, is due to be a 1.6 mile single carriageway road which would include new bridges over the Trent and Mersey Canal, and the nearby railway line.

In October, the council submitted its detailed business case to the government for sign off, expecting a decision before the end of the year.

Roads minister Guy Opperman said that although the government had approved the scheme at the previous business case stage, costs had risen and in the latest business case the overall value for money provided was "poor".

"Therefore, I have been unable to give approval to allow the scheme to proceed into construction at this time," he said.

"I have asked the promoting authority, Cheshire East Council, to look again at the scheme costs."

The full cost of the scheme is now £95.7m, and the DfT was expected to contribute around half of that.

But now that is all up in the air.

Jean Eaton is a former counillor and says Middlewich is the area's "poor relation"

There is a view among some in Middlewich that the town is being left behind compared to Knutsford, Sandbach and Holmes Chapel.

Jean Eaton, who spent 16 years as a town councillor for hyperlocal party Middlewich First, said Congleton also seemed to get plenty of attention.

The delays to the bypass were "absolutely disgusting," said Ms Eaton, who has lived in the town for 50 years.

"Other bypasses that were in the pipeline have gone on, but Middlewich seems to lose everything.

"Middlewich seems to get left out of most things - we’re what we call the poor relation of Cheshire East."

She added she believed councillors on Cheshire East should "push harder".

The bypass has been proposed for a number of years but is still not yet built

Conservative MP Fiona Bruce said she had campaigned for the road since taking her seat in 2010.

"I have long been pressing for work on Middlewich Bypass to start.

"No wonder residents are asking, 'What has Labour been doing all this time?'" she said.

Sam Corcoran, the Labour leader of Cheshire East Council, said the council was "disappointed" at the latest setback, and wanted an urgent meeting with the government.

"This further delay to the approval of the scheme is a further blow to the council's growth and levelling up ambitions for the borough.

"It will also be a desperate disappointment for the residents of Middlewich, as well as the businesses that were hoping to come to new premises in Middlewich on the back of the bypass being completed."

In response to Ms Bruce, Mr Corcoran said: "Fiona Bruce claims that she secured nearly £57m of government funding for the scheme in 2017.

"Yet when the government is asked to sign off on £48m, they refuse.

"As with HS2 coming to Crewe, this government flip-flops."

But while the politicians trade barbs, for many in the town, the announcement that - for now, at least - the bypass is on hold was not unexpected.

"Nothing surprises me," said one woman outside the town's library.

"The bypass most probably won’t go up in my time."