1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148 
Report delays road plan
Page 8
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
• A new report has dampened hopes that a dual-carriageway will be built along the western edge of the West Midlands conurbation.
Hauliers say a new road linking Junction 4 of the MS to the M54 and the M6 north of Wolverhampton is vital to relieve worsening congestion in the region.
But an independent study found that one of the main arguments for the road— to regenerate run-down parts of the Black Country—was not conclusive.
Now regional planners have commissioned a new study to examine the project's potential benefits in detail. But this will take at least a year. further delaying a decision on the road which was originally designated a motorway when first proposed in the 1980s.
John Hancox, Midlands and Western regional chairman of the Road Haulage Association, believes the road is now at least 10 years away from being built even though traffic congestion is already intolerable.
it seems very low on either the government or the public's priority list. In my view it is a desperate situation. You just can't put a time on journeys now from Wombourne through Kingswinford and Stourbridge to the Mb," he says.
Rose Poulter, policy development director for the West Midlands Local Government Association, confirms that a recommendation about whether to build the road was due to have been sent to the Transport Secretary later this year.
"We are saying there is not enough information to make a decision," she adds.