Work on a huge new link road off the A52 could begin in 2024 if a bid to Government for £40m is successful. Councillors say the Toton link road would better connect and reduce congestion in Stapleford, Toton and Chetwynd.
The development was unanimously voted through during a Nottinghamshire County Council meeting last year, when the cost was estimated at £30m. It would link the A52 to Toton Lane via a new, single-carriageway spine road running through the Baulk Lane area, accessed via a sliproad off Brian Clough Way.
It will come as part of the Toton and Chetwynd Barracks Masterplan, with plans for thousands of new homes and a new leisure centre. A tram extension could then also potentially run further to Toton sidings if a new station is to be built.
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Councillor Keith Girling, who represents Newark West for the Conservatives and is the chairman of the Economic Development and Asset Management Committee, said: "We have put in a £40m bid to the Government. If it is successful what it is going to do is provide a link road from the A52 into this area.
"It will unlock around 2,700 homes, some employment buildings, but equally as important is Chetwynd Barracks and there are going to be houses there, so it will provide a link into that and out, to help congestion.
"If we are successful there will be spades in the ground around 2024 and finished by 2026, so quite a short time period for it to all happen really."
A number of concerns had however been raised. These included the destruction of open space, typically used by dog walkers, as well as doubts over whether it was needed following the announcement of the Government's re-hashed Integrated Rail Plan (IRP) last year. The IRP revealed a "world-class" HS2 hub at Toton had been scrapped, in favour of a station at East Midlands Parkway.
But it has been argued there are still plans for a station at Toton, only now this would be operated by Network Rail and used by existing services. The new infrastructure would also play a part in coherently joining up the successful Levelling Up bids in Eastwood and Stapleford, for example, and also encouraging further Government investment in the future.
Addressing the concerns, Councillor Girling added: "We always had a Plan B. You cannot rely on getting something even if you bid for it.
"We have always had a Plan B for this area anyway - it is ideal as an investment area. We have got the freeport just down the road, which will be part of all this master planning, so it is about creating the space and the jobs for the people so they don't have to travel a long way to get to those jobs. It will reduce the pressures on the road infrastructure.
"It's not just going to be a road. It is going to be a walking path and a cycling path as well. It links in all this area for investment and also into Chetwynd, so it is another way out onto the A52. It is a massive relief even if just for the road itself."
Darren Henry, Conservative MP for Broxtowe, says the overall aim is to convince people to live and work in Nottinghamshire, including his own children. He says: "We are turning this area into a hotspot for investment.
"Government has already committed tens of millions to Towns Funds in places like Stapleford, it has committed billions to an HS2 station nearby, and also opened the door to a Network Rail station right here at Toton.
"Our role now is to make the most of major investment in the East Midlands so that we can deliver new homes, new transport links and new job opportunities for our people into the future.
"We are making sure that we are match-fit to manage that investment by setting up a development corporation which will plan and promote these big sites, and by pushing ahead with a devolution deal which will enable us to access more funding and have a greater say in how it is invested."
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