Work can begin on new St Austell road after funding confirmed

Work can begin immediately on the new road linking Stenalees with the A30 at Victoria

A new road is set to be built in Cornwall after the government confirmed funding of £78.5m.

The 3.9 mile (6.3km) single-carriageway road will link St Austell with the A30.

Work can begin immediately on the project which includes a shared cycling and pedestrian route.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said the new link road would "reduce journey times and better link St Austell with the rest of Cornwall".

The route will link the A391 at Carluddon with Victoria and provide an alternative for traffic that currently goes through the villages of Bugle and Roche.

The Department for Transport said the road would create 6,300 new local jobs and generate more than£110m in wider economic benefits through reduced journey times and increased investment.

Steve Double, MP for St Austell and Newquay, said: "It has been frustrating that the construction of this road has fallen two years behind the original plans, mainly due to the pandemic, but we have finally got there.

"It now means work can begin immediately on providing this vital link. This scheme will not only benefit St Austell and the surrounding area, relieving pressure on Roche, Bugle and Stenalees, but also provide huge economic benefits and a more direct route to the A30 and Cornwall Airport Newquay."