Elmbridge park-and-ride plans get funding

Funding has been approved for transport improvements and a new park-and-ride between Cheltenham and Gloucester.

The work will see a 1,000 space park-and-ride at Elmbridge Court, road capacity improvements on the A40 and more frequent bus services.

However it does not include a railway station, which was originally looked at in 2005 but has since been dropped.

The measures are part of £854m worth of government investment in 21 transport schemes across England.

'Difficult junction'

A spokesman for the Conservative-run Gloucestershire County Council said the work would make travel between the two destinations quicker and easier.

"The Elmbridge scheme will greatly improve transport for cars, buses and cyclists by making congestion-busting improvements to the road.

"It's simply about making things better at one of the busiest and most difficult junctions in the county.

We're delighted that this scheme has been accepted and that we are in line to receive almost [£14.1m out of £16.5m] the entire cost of the scheme.

"Costs over and above government funding would be met primarily from developer contributions," he added.

In September, Gloucestershire County Council had submitted its "best and final bid" for the Elmbridge Transport Scheme to the Department for Transport (DfT).

This was a revised version of plans originally put forward in March 2010.

The current bid includes:

• Capacity improvements to the Elmbridge Court junction - by constructing a new "straight on" lane between A40 Golden Valley bypass to A40 Gloucester Northern bypass

• A 1,000 space park-and-ride site adjacent to the Elmbridge Court Business Park, with access off the A40 Golden Valley bypass

• A frequent bus service serving Elmbridge Court and Arle Court P&R sites to the centres of Gloucester and Cheltenham

• Four bus priority schemes in, and between, Gloucester and Cheltenham

It is hoped the work would be completed by 2015.