Shropshire Council releases £110 million tender to find contractor to construct North West Relief Road

If it goes ahead, the project will involve building a new, single carriageway to link the northern and western parts of Shrewsbury, essentially "completing the ring road".

The Shropshire Council document details what the project will involve including nearly 7km of road, a new bridge over the Severn and its flood plain and a new bridge over the Shrewsbury-Chester railway line to "connect the A5 at Welshpool Road roundabout in the west to the Ellesmere Road roundabout in the north of Shrewsbury."

Every single part of the project will be expected to be completed by the winning contractor.

The contract is supposed to begin on January 10, 2025, with Shropshire Council expecting the work to be finished by September 24, 2027.

Those who want to win the contract have until midday on April 15 to submit their bid.

For and Against

Once the contractor is in place, those who support the project say the next stage will involve presenting the business case to the council, complete with up-to-date costs. But this is a point of contention, which we'll touch on later in the article.

Councillor Dan Morris, who's responsible for "highways," said: "I'm pleased that there's another stage for the completion of the North West Relief Road taking place.

"It's a necessary part of the process before we go to full business case later in the year, and it's good to see that steady progress is being made.

"I'm not going to take anything for granted, and we've still got to put the decision before council for the full business case, so I don't want to pre-empt anything that might happen at that point, but it is another stage in the process and I'm obviously very pleased to see it going forwards," he continued.

"As far as I'm concerned this is just the completion of the ring road, the final piece in the jigsaw, and it'll be of huge economic benefit to Shrewsbury and Shropshire."

Shrewsbury MP Daniel Kawczynski, who has been a staunch supporter of the project, told the Shropshire Star on Sunday: "As MP for Shrewsbury I am proud to have secured government funding for such a vital infrastructure project for Shrewsbury.

"This road will not only alleviate growing traffic congestion in Shrewsbury but also reduce how our surrounding villages used as rat runs by large lorries.

"This project together with the town centre redevelopment and the modernisation of RSH is testimony to massive investment into Shrewsbury by this Conservative government and I am proud to have played by part in securing funding for all 3 projects which are the biggest in our County," he continued.

While those who support the project are delighted that the tender has been issued, those opposed to the NWRR are furious that Shropshire Council have ploughed on with finding a contractor, without resolving certain issues surrounding the project.

They claim central government haven't officially committed to fund the project, and it would be risky to contract £110 million without the official funding in place; they don't believe you can go to tender before the business case has been presented to the council, and they say some of the environmental conditions haven't been resolved.

Councillor David Vasmer told the Shropshire Star: "I think it's outrageous to issue tender documents because the full business case hasn't been approved by the council yet and that's due in December, and they shouldn't be going forward until that is agreed, and on that basis the government will decide whether it funds it or not. There is no clear commitment from the government on funding the North West Relief Road at the moment.

Supporters argue that they need to issue the tender because having a contractor in place will give them a better idea of the overall cost ahead of presenting the full business case.

Councillor Julian Dean added: "It's shocking and irresponsible that Shropshire's Conservative leaders continue to commit resources to a scheme without a Full Business Case and with no guarantee of government funding.

"Its also shocking that they can put a price on a tender for contractors to see, but won't come clean to residents about the cost of the road.

"With vanishing prospects of the current minister being in place by the time the full business case gets done, the responsible thing to do would be to spend only what is absolutely necessary," he continued.

"Instead they are gambling £16m whilst at the same time slashing local services."

Whether the saga of the North West Relief Road is actually coming to an end with work genuinely starting in Janaury next year remains to be seen, but the tender process certainly appears to mark another step towards construction of this divisive carriageway.