Trafford council ignores ‘voiceless’ residents as plans for major road through Carrington Moss are green lit

Village residents say they have been left feeling ‘voiceless and overwhelmed’ after Trafford Council refused sustainable alternatives to building a major road through Carrington.

A petition against building roads through the village and surrounding greenbelt was presented to full council last Wednesday, after receiving 1,632 signatures.

This follows the petition scheme whereby a petition containing more than 500 signatures will be debated by the council.

Anna Chopping, from the Friends of Carrington Moss, the petition organisers, told the council meeting: “We are local people and these signatures represent a community that is feeling voiceless and overwhelmed by this tidal wave of development in our area.”

Residents say they received no prior warning about plans for road development and are demanding more involvement with finding a sustainable alternative.

Surely @Trafford_Labour are fully committed to getting people onto public transport in Carrington to tackle the Climate Crisis, that’s why they’re building a new road. We all know building roads is the best way to get people onto buses.

— A56 Safety Campaign (@A56Safety) October 22, 2021

Presenting the petition, Anna Chopping said: “The objectives for this road are not about prioritising the improvement of health, wellbeing or basic safety of local residents.”

She said efforts should be focused on improving the area’s poor bus and train routes, especially in light of Trafford declaring a climate emergency in 2018.

“How are we to be making safer, more sustainable transport choices that allow us to get out of our cars when the focus is entirely on building more roads and with no actual commitment to improving public transport?,” she said.

Lib Dem Councillor Julian Newgrosh agreed with the importance of improving public transport in the area, instead encouraging Trafford Council to explore a nearby disused railway.

“All of Trafford would benefit from the reinstatement of the railway, a truly sustainable development connecting much-needed areas of Trafford, both to Liverpool and onwards,” he said.

Green Party Councillor Geraldine Coggins also agreed with the petition due to increased road congestion, noting that no modelling has been done in this area.

“It has been known for decades that new roads literally invite more people to drive on them,” she said, suggesting low traffic neighbourhoods and decent direct cycle routes as possible alternatives.

Conservative Councillor Laura Evans shared this need for a different solution, stating that: “We will later discuss how we will empower Trafford to take climate action, as this certainly isn’t it.”

Labour Councillor James Wright strongly opposed these discussions, stating: “The relief road will itself provide safe cycling to the rest of Trafford for the first time [and] facilitate swifter links by bus.”

He remained eager to pursue the new development as a means of providing local residents with secure jobs and homes.

While the petition wasn’t taken to a formal vote, council leader Andrew Western lent his support for the new road, believing in the “transformative impact that we see this relief road having on the community. The socio and economic statuses of the people of Partington have been held back for too long by appalling transport infrastructure.”

After the meeting, Anna Chopping told the Northern Quota: “We are desperate for a solution to the HGVs tearing through the village.”

She said this would only increase with the new relief road. She expressed disappointment that residents were not being involved in plans for a more sustainable solution.

However, she praised the support that the petition received, saying: “It’s the biggest petition that Trafford Council have ever seen, so that already speaks volumes.”

The road is set to start construction in spring 2023. A further chance to alter plans for the relief road may arise in spring 2022 when the planning application is submitted.