Councillor Coxshall introduced the report and stated that this scheme had been long awaited by residents and Members alike, and felt it was good to see the scheme moving forward. He clarified that approval had been received by the Minister at the Conservative Party Conference, and could now progress to the next stage of development. He explained that the East facing access on A13 would relieve the problem of congestion, particularly at the Treacle Mine Roundabout, Sainsbury’s Roundabout and at junction 30/31 of the M25, as the new access would mean that traffic could go straight from Lakeside onto the A13. He described that the next stage in the process, if agreed by Cabinet, would be to send the outline business case to the Minister for them to make a decision on, and then work could begin quickly. Councillor Coxshall mentioned that the proposed route of the LTC also contained similar problems to the current Lakeside access problems, as there was no local connectivity to the LTC, so residents would have to travel to Stanford-le-Hope and back on themselves to gain LTC access. He stated that Highways England were currently undertaking a second round of consultation, and urged residents to take part.

Councillor Watkins supported the recommendations as he felt that the new East facing access would reduce congestion at the Dartford Crossing, and help residents in Stifford and Chafford Hundred, as traffic would not be diverted through their residential areas. He added that this would also improve air quality in the area, and 3-4 Air Quality Monitoring Stations were currently being set up near to Lakeside and surrounding residential areas. Councillor Mayes also supported the recommendations as he felt it would reduce pollution, as the biggest pollutant in the borough was traffic. He felt concerned regarding the LTC scheme put forward by Highways England as he felt it would have a negative effect on people’s health. He stated that the new East facing A13 access would benefit residents health as it would reduce congestion on the M25, ensuring more free-flowing traffic and less pollution.

The Leader highlighted that new traffic modelling projections showed the new access scheme would reduce congestion in the area, and at junction 30/31, by 40%. He stated that Thurrock remained opposed to the LTC, but wanted to ensure that if it was built in Thurrock, it was built right by design. He stated that the outline business case would be submitted to government, but every year the scheme was delayed cost more to the taxpayer, as the scheme increased in price by £1million per year due to inflation.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet:

1. Noted and endorsed the work undertaken to develop the A13 East Facing Access scheme to date.

2. Noted and endorsed the Options Assessment process identifying the sifting process and prioritisation of schemes for submission to the Department for Transport.

3. Noted the funding implications associated with the A13 East Facing Access scheme options, as set out in Section 7.

4. Agreed that the Director of Place, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Strategic Planning, submit the outline business case to the Department for Transport and continue to develop the full business case for the scheme.

Reason for decision: as outlined in the report
This decision is subject to call-in