Park campaigners celebrate as major Merseyside dual carriageway scrapped in budget
Campaigners are celebrating after plans for a dual carriageway which they say would have "destroyed" a Merseyside country park were cancelled in the budget. Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered the Labour government's first budget on Wednesday afternoon, in which she set out her party's plans to deliver growth and "fix the foundations" of the economy.
The decision to cancel the A5036 Port of Liverpool Access Road dual carriageway in Sefton was included in the full autumn budget statement. It read: “As part of the government’s commitment to growth, it will take difficult decisions where there is not a clear value for money case to invest.
"After a review the Transport Secretary has decided not to progress with the following unfunded and unaffordable road schemes on the strategic road network: A5036 Princess Way."
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The road would have run through the Rimrose Valley country park, which forms a border between Crosby and Litherland. Campaign group Save Rimrose Valley has worked to oppose National Highways’ A5036 Port of Liverpool Access Road plans since they were announced in 2017.
The group has long-called for better solutions to port access to be developed instead, including increasing rail freight capacity and innovative freight logistics technology. It says thousands of members of the public attended protests and demonstrations in opposition to the plans.
Speaking in response to the announcement, campaign co-ordinator Stuart Bennett said: "Today’s outcome is the culmination of seven years’ hard work, community action and vindication that what we’ve been saying all along, is correct. The road proposal was the wrong ‘solution’, which would have destroyed the last green space of its kind in what is already a heavily urbanised and polluted part of Liverpool. The fact that it was ever on the table is a disgrace and National Highways has serious questions to answer.
“Our campaign is incredibly proud that, by uniting as a community, standing up for ourselves, and working with our local and regional politicians, we were able to slam the brakes on these plans and force the government to think again. We would like to thank them for listening to us and for proving that democracy is alive and well.
“At the same time, we recognise that the cancellation of the road does nothing to solve the ongoing issues created by the Port of Liverpool’s operations and its impact on our everyday lives. This is why we’ll continue to fight for better, sustainable solutions to port access, just as we have done throughout our campaign. We will work with neighbouring communities to achieve this through our role as part of the South Sefton Communities Alliance.
“As for the future of the park, our campaign has been organised by the charity Rimrose Valley Friends, which was formed to promote, protect and enhance this amazing piece of green space. Today’s announcement means that we can finally devote 100% of our time and energy to achieving these goals, without the worry of the bulldozers moving in.
"We have great plans for enhancing the park and firmly believe we can have a huge, positive impact on the lives of people in the surrounding communities and beyond. For the first time in almost a decade, the future looks bright.”
National Highways has been contacted for comment.