Nottinghamshire County Council as the highway authority has officially marked the ground breaking of works on the Gedling Access Road.
The event held at the site compound off Lambley Lane launched the beginning of the 18-month construction which will reduce congestion, boost the redevelopment potential of the local area and increase connectivity with wider Nottinghamshire.
Representatives from Nottinghamshire County Council were joined by Via East Midlands, Gedling Borough Council, Balfour Beatty, Keepmoat Homes, D2N2 and Homes England who are all partners in the project.
The project includes a substantial programme of ecology mitigation measures and will bring environmental benefits to the area by planting 5.84 hectares of new woodland, which is a 40% increase in woodland area, to offset the carbon footprint.
Initial works which have taken place include site clearance across the entire 3.8km stretch of the road to prepare for major earth movement and drainage works in coming weeks.
Councillor Kay Cutts MBE, Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “The Gedling Access Road will lead the way for future sustainable development in the area, particularly on the former Gedling Colliery/Chase Farm site which has stood empty since 1991.
“The project team have designed the scheme to ensure it is ecologically sensitive. This will result in increasing the area’s biodiversity, including planting native species and specific design features to protect and enhance the local wildlife.
“The completed road will pave the way for new housing and business developments to better provide for Gedling as a thriving community whilst reducing the amount of traffic on urban roads. The existing roads will remain to provide a quieter route for local traffic, including buses, cyclists, and pedestrians.
“Upon completion of the GAR, the new road will become the A6211, and the existing route will be declassified, save for Colwick Loop Road which will be reclassified as a ‘B’ class road. It is also intended to reduce the speed limit on Arnold Lane and introduce a 7.5t Environmental Weight Limit on Burton Road, Shearing Hill.
“The project is significant to the community as it will reduce congestion in Gedling Village and will increase connectivity with the wider road network.
“Nottinghamshire County Council is leading the way to ensure that our county is a great place to live, work, visit and bring up a family.”
The development of the road will draw funding from key partners, with; Homes England, contributing £7.17 million, Developers Keepmoat contributing £17 million (which includes £4.48 million from a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) secured by Gedling Borough Council), £10.8 Million from the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), £5.4 million from Nottinghamshire County Council and a further £529,000 from section 106 contributions, including £436,000 from the nearby Teal Close development.