Highways Construction Scheme - Toneway Corridor Creech Castle Junction - Capacity Improvements

Tender description

Supplier Information Session Prior to the commencement of a procurement exercise for Somerset County Council's 'Highways Construction Scheme - Toneway Corridor - Creech Castle Junction - Capacity Improvements', the Council will be holiding a supplier information session. This will be an opportunity for supplier to learn about the project, requirements and procurement process. Location - Museum of Somerset Date - Thursday 26th September 2019 Time - 14:00 - 15:30 To express interest in the event, please visit the buyer profile for Somerset County Council at www.supplyingthesouthwest.org.uk On the contract listing please click the button 'Login and express interest in this opportunity' then use the messaging function to submit the names of attendees. We ask that up to 2 attendees per organisation are named due to venue capacity. Additional information: The Toneway Corridor, the junctions at Creech Castle, Obridge and Heron Gate, provides the key connection between the A38, the M5 (Junction 25) and Taunton Town Centre. These junctions serve the existing employment sites and suffer from high levels of congestion at peak times, both morning and afternoon. Over the next 15 years, significant levels of employment, retail and residential development are proposed in Taunton including urban extensions in Monkton Heathfield to the east of Taunton and potentially at Comeytrowe to the southwest of Taunton. Without intervention this corridor will act as a constraint on housing and economic growth. This scheme will increase highway capacity and improve traffic flow along the corridor to enable future growth to be accommodated. There are 2 employment sites (Blackbrook and Hankridge) located close to the corridor and the proximity of the M5 makes them attractive to businesses to locate there. The proposal for a new strategic employment site, generating up to 3000 jobs, to be located to the east of Junction 25 at Henlade has been identified by Taunton Deane Borough Council's Site Allocation and Development Management Plan evidence base work. In addition, Taunton is also forecast to deliver 13,000 dwellings as part of Taunton Deane's Core Strategy, which will also place considerable pressure on the corridor. Therefore it is fundamental that improvements are made to cope with this projected increase in demand. The proposed scheme involves: • Increased lanes on all approaches; • Removal of right turn from A358 West into Bridgwater Road South; • New at grade pedestrian and cycle crossings; • New cycle access bridge on Bridgwater Road North. The proposed scheme will deliver: • Improved facilities for pedestrians and cyclists; • Better manage peak hour traffic; • Junction signals will operate more efficiently enabling more traffic through at each cycle; • Improve access to Taunton and the M5; • Builds upon improvements at J25; • Benefit the economy of Taunton by providing space for traffic growth.