§ Mr. StreeterTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he has decided to proceed with the proposal for a second crossing of the River Tamar.
§ Mr. KeyThe proposal for a new crossing of the River Tamar has generated much interest and more than 5,000 people visited the public exhibitions held in the summer. Although the views of the public were evenly balanced, we have also had due regard for the views of the local authorities and other interested parties, who have expressed concern about the economic effects on the local area of a new tolled crossing.
Therefore, I shall be commissioning further studies into these effects as the next step forward on this important project. Officials of the south-west network management division of the Highways Agency will now contact the local authorities to discuss the precise aspects that the studies should cover.
No decision has been taken about the means of financing any new crossing of the Tamar and the degree to which private finance could be involved.
To choose any route corridor in such a beautiful and environmentally important area is difficult, but I am satisfied that if a new crossing of the River Tamar ultimately proceeds, the red route corridor as recommended by my consultants, and preferred by the majority of the people who have made comments on the various route options, is the least damaging in environmental terms. I have therefore decided that this route should be protected from development, but this does not mean that a decision to proceed with the project has definitely been taken: I need to see the outcome of the further studies first.