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See the front page for latest news.
It's official! There is no money until
2016!
26-02-09 :: 4NW have confirmed that bypass funding
has been delayed until 2016. The official announcement will be
made tomorrow (Friday) but the local press are already all over
it, largely thanks to Tom Levitt, who is apparently furious. You
can read our press release here.
A big thank you to everyone who responded to the consultation.
We may just have made a difference...
Hot off the press...
24-02-09 :: We're hearing tales through
the grapevine that funding for the bypass has been delayed.
4NW haven't made any official announcement so we don't know all
the details yet, but we will post them here as soon as we find
out what's going on...
Stop the money, stop the scheme!
24-01-09 :: A new year, and a new opportunity. The
regional funding allocation process is underway. This is when
each region decides which transport projects should be allocated
money from the budget. This year the North West region is 35%
over budget, thanks to the ever-increasing costs of road schemes
like Mottram Tintwistle. We're asking the region to withdraw funding
for the scheme and divert the money to environmentally sustainable
alternative, like the mersey tramway, and other public transport
schemes. More....
Thanks!
12-Dec-08 :: A big thank you to everyone who turned
out last night to support us at the Xmas party and quiz, to Jane
and Mick at the Bull's Head for providing the venue and hospitality,
and Lunar Coup for the wonderful music. The night was a great
success and will definitely be repeated in 2009!
T-shirts? Sold out!
12-Dec-08 :: We're delighted to be able to report we've
sold out of our limited edition t-shirts. We'll be printing a
new range in 2009. To pre-order, send an e-mail to stuff[at]saveswallowswood.org.uk.
Quiz night--tonight!!
11-Dec-08 :: Don't forget, tonight's the night
of our Great Big Save Swallow's Wood Christmas Party and Quiz!
Join us the Bull's Head, Tintwistle from 8pm onwards.
Nature Walk This Weekend!
28-Oct-08 :: On Sunday 2nd November we're organising
a nature walk around the Swallow's Wood Nature Reserve. Please
come along to discover more about the threatened area on our doorstep.
You can download our
poster or read more about the walk in the press
release.
We're also holding our first ever Christmas party in December.
This will include food, music, and a quiz with some fabulous prizes.
Contact us for more information.
More delays say incompetent
Highways Agency.
30-Aug-08 :: Last week the Highways Agency
announced the inquiry would be delayed even further to give them
the time they need to fix all the errors in their original submission(s)
to the Inquiry. For more information, see the press
article. You can read the HA justification for the delay in
the Inquiry document HA/78 (see Persona
news page)
Bypass costs rise 20-70%!!!
23-Jul-08 :: Information published by
the DfT last week revealed that the cost of the bypass could rise
between 20 to 70%! Worst case (for the DfT) the scheme could come
in at a whopping £315 million--a far cry from the £90
million first put forward by the DfT in 2001.
Read our press release to find
out more.
Questions of clarification,
answers of confusion
21-Jul-08 :: Today we received a letter
from the Highways Agency in response to questions of clarification
regarding the timing of the publication of evidence. The Highways
Agency were supposed to report back to the inquiry in May, but
failed to do so, leaving objectors of the scheme in limbo. No-one
seems to know (or be prepared to say) when any information will
be forthcoming. See the HA response here.
Documents page added
25-Apr-08 :: We've added a page linking
to useful documents that relate to the bypass, such as the AST,
the Nichols report (which singles out Mottram-Tintwistle as an
example of the Highways Agency's poor financial management), and
others. Visit the Documents and Freedom
of Information page to find out more.
Still no progress
25-Apr-08 :: The waiting game continues.
Apparently the Highways Agency will have finished the traffic
modelling sometime in May and the Environmental Statement will
be published some time in October. For the latest information,
visit the Persona
website.
2008 Update?
07-Mar-08 :: Still no news about the
status of the documentation and the public inquiry, but it would
seem we're not the only ones in the dark, as the Inspector recently
submitted a document to the Inquiry asking when/if the HA intend
to submit their new evidence to the inquiry (see PDF).
What we do know that Stephen Greenhalgh is no longer running the
show for the Highways Agency and that traffic cameras installed
on Market Street, Hollingworth recently suggest that someone's
looking at the traffic forecasts again. Watch this space...
National Grid's plans for Woodhead
threaten alternatives
15-Dec-07 :: National Grid is proposing
to use the Woodhead rail tunnel for cabling. If this goes ahead
the tunnel will no longer be viable for rail use, which means
a key alternative to the bypass and the problem of transpennine
rail freight will be lost. A national campaign to keep the tunnel
open is being organised by Campaign for Better Transport, and
a local campaign is launching on December 18th at Bradbury House,
Glossop. See http://www.bettertransport.org.uk/
and http://savethewoodheadtunnel.blogspot.com/
for information about the campaign and actions you can take to
prevent this going ahead. See also the recent
Guardian article.
More PI delays likely
04-Dec-07 :: The Highways Agency have
announced they are unlikely to have the revised inquiry documents
ready until Easter 2008. We'll find out more when the inquiry
reopens, albeit briefly, on December 18th.
Limited edition "Save
Swallow's Wood" T-shirts on sale!
15-Nov-07 :: Looking for gifts for Christmas,
or just looking to spruce up your wardrobe? Then look no further.
Now you can be the proud owner of a handmade, ethically sourced,
limited edition campaign t-shirt. Support us and get something
funky in return.
Order
your t-shirt here
Inquiry adjourned again, until
December 18th
07-Nov-07 :: What a pointless exercise.
On 6th November objectors and promoters gathered to hear the latest
on the Highways Agency's changes to their evidence and supporting
documentation in response to the errors they found in September.
Despite redoing some of their evidence, they admitted they have
since found further errors ("anomalies") in the traffic
model, which invalidate all the evidence they have so far republished.
At the public's expense, the HA are now going over their work
for a fifth time to fix these errors. The inquiry will reconvene
on December 18th 2007, when the HA hope to be able to tell us
all how these latest errors will impact on the Inquiry going forward.
For full details of the days events, read the transcript.
Inquiry adjourned until November
6th 2007
19-Sep-07 :: Only five days into the
Inquiry after the summer recess and it has been adjourned until
early November. This is as a result of the Highways Agency admitting
to errors in the traffic model that will impact on their forecasts
for Air Quality, Traffic, the Economic Case, Noise, and Policies
and Plans. The full Environmental Statement was first published
in 2006, then again in 2007 (this time including "Route Restraint",
in an effort to appease the National Park. Within weeks of the
Inquiry opening, the Highways Agency were again fiddling the figures,
correcting mistakes, and published Errata to the 2007 documents.
Now more mistakes are coming to light, and everything has ground
to a halt. For full details of the days events, read the transcript.
Highways Agency admit to errors
11-Sep-07 :: Today the Highways Agency
admitted they had found errors in their traffic model, and are
at this stage unsure about the impact this will have on the scheme.
The Inquiry has been adjourned until Wednesday 19th September,
when the Highways Agency will return and inform objectors and
the Inspector of the likely consequences of this error. For more
information, read
the article published in the Manchester Evening News.
Deadline for Submission of
Evidence: Today!!
14-Aug-07 :: We submitted our evidence
to the Inquiry today. The documents will be available on the Persona
website (hard copies are in the Inquiry library at Stalybridge)
but are also posted here
for you to download. The Inquiry (recessed over the summer) will
begin again in earnest on September 4th. More details are on the
main Inquiry
website.
EVENT: Nature Walk & Picnic,
19th August 2007
13-Aug-07 :: Details and directions are
here. You can download the
poster here.
Public Inquiry Starts on Tuesday
26th June
21-Jun-07 :: The long-awaited public
inquiry starts at 10pm on Tuesday 26th June. It will be held at
Stalybridge Civic Hall. Please try and be there if you can. If
you're unsure how to get there, visit GMPTE's journey
planner site to find out about public transport options. There
are regular buses running from Glossop and Longdendale. If you're
coming by car, please try and fill your car up with as many people
as possible.
Deadline Extended Again!
22-Jun-07 :: The Highways Agency were
later than anticipated so objectors have until 26th June to submit
their proofs. See news page on Persona's
website for details.
Deadline Extended: Highways
Agency Late
15-Jun-07 :: The Highways Agency were
late submitting their proofs of evidence, so objectors now have
"extra time" to work on their submissions. The deadline
will be extended by 1 working day for each day of delay. Persona
Associates have confirmed that the deadline for submission is
now 22nd June.
Letters from the Highways Agency
02-May-07 :: Many of you will have received
a letter from the the Highways Agency, who are organising the
Public Inquiry on behalf of the Highways Agency. In this letter
you will have been asked to submit your statement of case. Click
here for information.
Inquiry Website Set Up
30-Apr-07 :: The company Persona Associates
will be organising the Public Inquiry on behalf of the Highways
Agency. A website has been created that will be used to publish
all the relevant information about the Inquiry (documents, dates,
transcripts, etc). The website is located here:
Public Inquiry Dates Published
04-Apr-07 :: Details of the Pre-Inquiry
meeting and Public Inquiry have been published today by the Highways
Agency. Details are:
- 1st May 2007: Pre-inquiry meeting at Stalybridge Civic
Hall, Trinity Street, Stalybrige, SK15 2BN, starting at 10am.
The meeting will be precided over by Mr John Watson BSc, FIHT,
MICE, MCMI (appointed by the Secretary of State)
- 26th June 2007: Start of the Public Inquiry
More details relating to the Public Inquiry process will be posted
on this site shortly.
Consultation period for objections
closes
02-Apr-07 :: The deadline for objections
(30th March) has now passed. Thank you to those of you who objected
for the first time, and others who wrote again to reinforce their
initial objection (sent during 2006). As soon as we hear details
about objector numbers from the Highways Agency, we will let you
know. If you have sent an objection, you should receive written
confirmation from the Highways Agency, your objector number, and
details of the statutory process that will follow.
Peak District National
Park Object to the Revised Plans
31-Mar-07 :: Today, the Peak District
National Park Authority Members voted to object to the revised
A616/A628 Bypass and Route Restraint Measures. They also tabled
two additional recommendations, affirming their intention to revoke
"in principle" support during the upcoming policy review.
For full details, see the press
release on their website.
Line Orders republished
by the Highways Agency
14-Feb-07 :: On Thursday 8th February the Highways
Agency republished the draft Orders for the Mottram-Tintwistle
bypass. The consultation period is open until the 30th March.
If you wrote in to object during the 2006 consultation period
(which ended on May 5th 2006) your objection will upheld and you
need to do nothing. We are looking into the fact that the Highways
Agency are writing to people saying that objections they received
after this time must be confirmed in writing to remain valid.
We will post more information on this website as soon as we know
more. For more information about objecting to the scheme, click
here. To read about the impacts of the scheme (CO2, affect
on local communities), visit the Impacts
page.
Regional Assembly delay funding
for the bypass
20-Jul-06 :: Delay, delay, delay! The North West
Regional Assembly have announced moved the Mottram-Tintwistle
bypass and the Glossop Spur schemes from the 2009/10 funding list
to the 2015/16 list (see the DfT
website for full details). This is very good news, but does
not mean that everything is on hold. Tameside's councillors and
MPs are lobbying hard to try and have this decision overturned
and the Highways Agency are keen to progress the statutory processes
irrespective of this funding decision. This means the Public Inquiry
will still go ahead in 2007, though not as early in the year as
they hoped. Announcements regarding the date for the main Inquiry
and pre-Inquiry meetings are to be announced.
The calm before the storm...
30-Jun-06 - Now the official deadline for objections has
passed and the consultation period is over, we can now stop jumping
to the Highways Agency tune and get back on with running our campaign.
The focus for the summer has been getting out and about to talk
to local residents about the impacts of the scheme. See our events
pages for more information about plans for the summer months.
South Yorkshire MPs Quiz the
Minister over Bypass Plans
13-Jun-06 - MPs from Langsett and Barnsley have been pestering
the minister over the bypass plans. Read the full Q&A on Hansard.
Deadline for Objections has
passed
24-May-06 – The official deadline for objectors
to the A628 Mottram Tintwistle bypass has passed, but you can
still send in an objection if you haven't already done so. The
Highways Agency will accept objections up to three weeks before
the start of a Public Inquiry. An announcement about the date
of the public inquiry is expected by 2nd June.
Vivienne Westwood supports
SSW
12-May-06 – Vivienne Westwood, who grew up in
Tintwistle, has sent us a letter of support! Click
here for details.
Peak District National Park
object to the bypass plans
7-Apr-06 – The Peak District National Park are objecting
to the bypass plans. Read their press release here.
Tintwistle Survey shows only
30% support a bypass
14-Mar-06 - See the press
release for full details. Download
the survey here.
Tree Dressing Event a Success!
06-Feb-06 - Over 40 supporters turned out to tie their
tokens to trees on Lumb Lane, Hollingworth. Many thanks to everyone
who braved the rain and mist. A summary of the event and some
photos are on the Indymedia
website. More photos are here.
Tameside and High Peak approve
the Glossop Spur planning application
10-Dec-05 - Despite the best efforts of everyone involved
in our campaign and all our supporters, Tameside and High Peak
Councils approved their respective planning applications for the
Glossop Spur road. For both applications, the majority of the
letters were received were from objectors, but neither this -
nor an objection from the Peak District National Park Authority
- were enough to sway the Councillors involved in the planning
decision. Although funding for the Spur road is still uncertain,
it is likely that if the main bypass goes ahead, so will the spur.
A copy of the objections sent in by our group can be downloaded
here: Save
Swallow's Wood Campaign's Objections to the Glossop Spur.
A628 Road Watch Information
Added to the Website
28-Apr-05 - A new section has
been added, providing details of accidents and disruptions that
have occurred along the A628 route. This list is work-in-progress,
so please contact
us with any missing information on road closures, accidents,
other disruptions to the route so that the table and related map
can be updated.
The addition of this information to the site is significant.
One of the primary arguments of the pro-bypass lobby, our Councillors,
and MPs is that the bypass will improve safety for drivers and
residents. Looking at the map,
however, it is clear that the majority of accidents occur outside
the line of the proposed bypass. Given that the Highways Agency
has admitted a bypass will attract more traffic onto the A628
route, this surely seems a recipe for further increasing the danger
levels along that route.
Save Swallow's Wood Joins Road
Block
18-Feb-05 - A new national campaign against road building
has been launched, and we've joined them. Road Block has been
setup by veteran road protesters in response to the Governments
u-turn on road building. It's aim is to support organisations
like ours and bring together other campaign groups from around
the country so we can all work together, sharing information,
ideas, and achievements, and - perhaps most importantly - stay
motivated. For more information, visit the
Road Block website.
New Forum Launched
15-Feb-05 - A forum for discussion of the campaign, alternatives,
and the view of local and non-locals alike has been added to the
site. Please the forum site by clicking here.
(You must subscribe if you wish to post messages.)
Craft Market Stall Takes Off
24-Nov-04 - Stalls on Glossop's Craft Market over the last
two months have proved a success, with many new residents coming
on board in support of the campaign, and many more signing the
petition opposing the bypass proposals. Events such as these are
proving vital to raising awarness amongst locals, many of whom
have fallen for the much publicised view that the bypass will
solve all their traffic problems. As many in Glossop are now finding
out, this is not the case.
A Wet, Grey Padfield Plum Fair
21-Sep-04 - Friends of the Earth kindly granted us permission
to join them on their stall at the Padfield Plum Fair on Sunday
14th September. It was cold, wet, and blustery. Still, that didn't
stop people coming out in force, many of whom signed our petition
and voiced their support for the campaign.
Success at the Mottram Show
20-Aug-04 - Thank you to the hundreds of people who visited
us at the Mottram Show this year and signed the petition. On the
day we collected over 250 signatures for the petition and met
many new supporters. Despite Glossop Chronicle turning down our
invitation to report our success in their paper, we made a great
start in bringing the campaign out to the people of Longdendale
and Glossopdale, and received very encouraging support from almost
everyone who visited our stall.
In addition to a brief visit from BBC Northwest's environment
correspondent, we were supported by many of the Show's stewards
as well as many people from outside the area, visitors to the
Show, who are clearly as outraged by our Council's proposals as
some of us are.
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