Go-ahead for £9.3m roads upgrade ‘last piece in puzzle’ for Oswestry investment

Councillor Steve Charmley, said he was delighted that the Government had released the funding which will improve two roundabouts on the Oswestry bypass and create a third on the Shrewsbury road into the town.

Once the improvements are made building work can start both on more than 500 new homes off the Shrewsbury Road and on the infrastructure for the business park to the east of the bypass.

The works will be carried out on the Mile End and the Whittington roundabouts on the bypass that carries both the A5 and the A483.

Councillor Charmley has been closely involved in promoting the Innovation Park to attract private investment and companies keen to relocate to Oswestry.

"The Mile End Roundabout is an important gateway to Oswestry and these improvements will improve the traffic flow both for drivers who want to get into the town centre as also for those who are travelling on the bypass as part of their journey through Shropshire.

"The area is a bottle neck at peak times and this funding will certainly improve the situation."

"It will also unlock the land off the Shrewsbury road that has planning permission for new homes for the town," he said.

See also:

• A5 dual carriageway at Oswestry is 'guaranteed' - highways chief

The deputy leader said that providing more homes in Oswestry would help bring investment onto the business park.

"I was part of a deputation to an industry event in France where we were promoting the innovation park. One of the main questions we were asked was would there be housing for the employees. The two go hand-in-hand."

"The £9.3 million for the road improvements is the final piece in the jigsaw for both the housing and the innovation park."

Councillor Charmley praised the partnership work that has brought the funding to the area and is helping to provide the business park.

"Shropshire Council has worked closely with the Government body, Homes England, the Marches Local Enterprise Partnership and others to unlock both the housing and business land."

Although the grant was announced more than 12 months ago, it has only been rubber stamped this week.

It is part of an £866 million government investment in infrastructure projects across England to help get up to 200,000 potential new homes off the ground.