Proposed A38 expansion – our response

The proposed A38 expansion in Derbyshire has been granted another development consent order (DCO) by the Secretary of State for Transport.

This means National Highways is allowed to begin construction work (although they haven’t published a timetable yet).

A CPRE report from 2017 reveals that road-building is failing to provide the congestion relief and economic boost promised while devastating the environment. It directly challenges government claims that ‘the economic gains from road investment are beyond doubt’; that road-building will lead to ‘mile a minute’ journeys; and that the impact on the environment will be limited ‘as far as possible’. The report shows how road building over the past two decades has repeatedly failed to live up to similar aims.

We at CPRE Derbyshire believe that this is still relevant and applies to the proposed A38 expansion. Apart from the obvious unwarranted, adverse environmental impact, there would be four years of chaos and air pollution during construction. There are also limited benefits for the people of Derby – those most inconvenienced – rather it is for the benefit of through traffic on the north-east / south-west route.