The business case for a bridge near Great Cornard.

The map shows the Chilton development shaded in red and the Middleton development area from the Western Relief Road Business plan ringed in blue. Sudbury to the east of the water meadows is surrounded by growth areas. These need a good road to link them to the A131 to the south and the A134 to the north. This update describes an alternative to the western bypass in response to our MP's challenge yesterday. THE STOUR Through traffic crossing the Stour is the main reason for congestion in the town centre. It has nowhere to go except Ballingdon bridge. A western bypass would remove only the north-south element, traffic between Bury St Edmunds and Halstead. It would be half a solution at best. The volume of east-west traffic maybe larger and will grow. A road with a new bridge south of Great Cornard, downstream from Sudbury, will solve the problem and benefit the community. THE A131 EXTENSION Road signs will change when the new road is built. Travelling from Halstead you will pass Bulmer Tye and then continue on a new section of the A131. The existing road to Ballingdon and Sudbury will be to the left. This new part of the strategic lorry network will take you past developments at Middleton and past Great Cornard to a new roundabout on the A134. This will be between Valley Road and the existing roundabout at Howletts garage. As befits a "connected town" its signs will point to Sudbury, Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich, Colchester, Chelmsford and Stansted airport. THE BENEFITS This new road will serve the needs of Middleton, Great Cornard and Chilton. It will link residential, community and business developments along its length to the A131/A134 corridor, a key regional objective. With a bit more traffic modelling the business case will write itself. Like the one at Ballingdon the new bridge should be an award winning design. As soon as our MP and ministers open it Sudbury will start to realise its true potential for business and tourism. The landscape and water meadows heritage site will be preserved for everyone. SUGGESTIONS PLEASE Your suggestions please for the best location for the bridge and alternative schemes!