Hampshire transport boss greenlights work to start on £9.5 Fareham road next summer

A VITAL £9.5m road is set to begin construction next summer after the county's transport boss gave it final approval.
Cars queuing in Newgate Lane, FarehamCars queuing in Newgate Lane, Fareham
Cars queuing in Newgate Lane, Fareham

Newgate Lane South, which will connect Newgate Lane to the Peel Common Roundabout was agreed by Councillor Rob Humby, executive member for transport on Hampshire County Council at a meeting in Winchester.

The 1.5km, 7.3m-wide road will take 12 months to build before it will be opened for use in the summer of 2018.

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It is hoped that the road will effectively remove traffic heading to Gosport from the existing Newgate Lane, which usually carries up to 25,000 vehicles a day.

Councillor Chris Wood, who represents Stubbington on Fareham Borough Council spoke at the meeting.

He said: ‘I’m totally in favour of bringing forward this road.

‘It is vitally needed and we need to get it done and built the sooner the better as it has now been talked about for a long time.’

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After the meeting, he said he was ‘delighted’ to see the road finally be approved, adding: ‘It will mean reduced queues and congestion for those coming into Gosport.’

Councillor Graham Burgess, who represents Lee on the county council said: ‘We have been waiting over 40 years to get to this point.

‘To me, this will be the final piece in the jigsaw and I have fully supported it.

‘It’s a vital piece of infrastructure within the Gosport peninsula.’

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The road will leave Newgate Lane near the junction with Tanners Lane, pass through playing fields and open farmland before joining the Peel Common roundabout via a new arm of the roundabout.

There is an agreement between the council and the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership for the funding.

The council is yet to acquire the necessary land for the development and is still in negotiations, but if an agreement is not reached, it will obtain the land through a compulsory purchase order in January.

Councillor Sean Woodward, leader of the borough council, added: ‘This is great news for both Gosport and Fareham residents.

‘We know the money from the LEP for the project is there so I look forward to seeing the work progress next year.’