M1-A6 link road: Government to pay £32.7m towards £60.3m cost

The link road will connect junction 11a of the M1 (pictured) at Dunstable/the A5 to the A6 north of Luton, close to Streatley

A new £60.3m link road is to be built after the Department for Transport approved £32.7m in funding.

Central Bedfordshire Council approved the M1 to A6 Link Road on green belt land north of Luton in April.

The scheme will also support the building of a rail freight interchange and 3,600 new homes.

The council's executive member for planning and regeneration Kevin Collins said the road would ease "congestion in the villages and areas north of Luton".

The council said the remaining sum will come from private developer contributions.

The road, which will have single and double carriageway stretches, will create a northern Luton bypass, running from the A6 to junction 11a of the M1, connecting it with the A5-M1 link road.

It will also include a 3m (9.8 ft)-wide cycle and foot path on its south side.

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Roads minister Baroness Vere said she knew many Bedfordshire residents were "frustrated by poor east-west connections north of Luton" and the road would "drastically improve accessibility".

Construction is due to begin in January 2022 and was expected to be completed by January 2024.

Luton Borough Council, which fought the plans, sought permission at the High Court for a judicial review of the decision. It was refused in May 2020.

The scheme was originally estimated to cost £64.6m.