Teesside freeport gets planning for transport upgrade

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council has given the go-ahead for transport infrastructure at the Teesworks freeport site on Teesside to support a new British Steel development. Earlier this year, the local council approved British Steel’s plans to construct a 500,000 sq ft manufacturing facility on a 41-acre site in Lackenby, near Middlesbrough.  The approval of these latest works by the Tees Valley mayor’s South Tees Development Corporation will be a catalyst for the development of the rest of the scheme which will now need multiple detailed planning consents to progress. The move forms a part of ongoing initiative aimed to better serve the increasing number of vehicles using the Teesworks site. It also follows on from the £1bn transport vision funding approved earlier this year by the Tees Valley mayor and Tees Valley Combined Authority. The scheme comprises parking facilities, offering around 150 articulated HGV parking spaces and 204 car parking spaces. In addition, it will create new security fencing with gatehouses controlling onward access into British Steel site. The new facility will be developed on an 18-acre plot of land north of the A1053/A66 Tees Dock Road roundabout and south of former Lackenby Works. Alterations to the Tees Dock roundabout have also been approved, which include a new leg to provide access to Lackenby alongside an additional lane on the existing carriageways. Gross development value of the proposed scheme will be £20m. Ben Houchen, Tees Valley mayor, said: “We can now get cracking with this new access road and lorry park paving the way for this huge investment in Teesside that will restore the heart to our industry.” Neil Westwick, senior director at Lichfields’ Newcastle office, who secured approval for the scheme, said: “Planning approval ensures the increasing demands on the site’s infrastructure will be met as British Steel’s new development comes on-line, and more investors move onto the site. “It’s part of wider plans to create jobs, investment opportunities and prosperity for Teesside, driving forward the region’s position as a global centre of industrial excellence.” See planning information for Redcar and Cleveland >> Image © Lichfields