Traffic concerns are once again a hot topic with the news that Marks & Spencer are looking to open a retail park just off Doncaster Road at Frodingham Grange. Berkeley Circle is a known trouble spot with congestion at peak times; this has a knock on effect with the other roads leading to it. There were plans back in 2006 to alter the circle which I wrote about here;

http://www.visitscunthorpe.com/ScunthorpeNews/Headline/Berkeley-Circle-to-Berkeley-Square

         The Proposed Atlerations to Berekely Circle

Of course there’s the added problem of football traffic heading in that direction too, many times traffic tails back along Scotter Road as far back as West Common Lane. This isn’t only confined to match days either, it also occurs during the morning and evening rush hours.

Traffic concerns are nothing new for Scotter Road, back in 1975 residents had set up an action committee in response to it being used as a proposed route for lorries carrying power station ash to the new M180 bridge crossing over the River Trent.
The Chairman of the towns Works and Highway Committee, Councillor Basil Fletcher had tried to reassure residents that it would only lead to a 10 percent increase in traffic.

He was providing figures at a meeting at the Borough Council which he claimed showed residents of Scotter Road would have less to put up with than residents of other main roads in the town.  He revealed that the latest count on Scotter Road showed 6000 vehicles used it in a 24 hour period; the ash carrying lorries would mean another 600 vehicles a day, a 10 percent increase. He compared it to Grange Lane which had 8000 vehicles over a 16 hour period, Kingsway & Queensway which had 12000 vehicles, Ashby Road 25000, Brigg Road 16000 & Ferry Road 3200 vehicles all over a 16 hour period.

Scotter Road he said, “was part of the towns heavy vehicle network and was envisaged to be so in the future.”
“However, we do intend to look at every aspect to try to alleviate the problems for residents. We have several measures in mind.”

“We have done every thing we can and I think it would be unreasonable if we were to say no it’s not going to go through. We recognize in the short term residents will suffer. We will do as much as possible in the meantime but we stand by our decision.” 

Nobody on the council wanted to inflict such traffic on any road in the borough but unpopular decisions had to be made.

Earlier, Councillor Leslie Hornsby said he believed every alternative means of transporting the ash has been explored and claimed the M180 motorway could be delayed by up to 12 months if the council pressed objections. The motorway was vital to the prosperity of Scunthorpe and the surrounding area.

Opposition Conservative councilor, Hugh Lewis declared that residents were very disturbed by the plan; he believed some of the ash could be moved by barge and he hoped Councillor Fletcher would press the Department of Environment.
Councillor Russ Mitchell however said the dust from the barge loading would create a major industrial problem and the extra cost would have to come from the public purse.

Of course the bridge along with the motorway where built in the second half of the 1970s, the bridge over the River Trent being officially opened in July 1979 by the then Under Secretary of State for Transport Kenneth Clarke.

The opening of the motorway vastly reduced the number of vehicles using the Kingsway & Queensway and one can see how chocked it gets when the M180 is closed.

However, back to today and do readers think that Marks & Spencer’s proposed move to Frodingham Grange will choke Scotter Road more, should the idea of turning Berkeley Circle into a square be revisited, should a new junction be added to the motorway at the Scotter Road/M180 flyover. What can be done to alleviate the inevitable problems with traffic along Scotter Road caused by the new retail outlet?