Gateshead Council leader slams "unsightly and costly" flyover as plans confirmed

The elevated section of the A167 was closed last week after inspections highlighted significant safety concerns. The Labour-controlled local authority has been discussing plans to remove the flyover for more than a decade, but such a vision has never come to fruition.

Prior to its closure, the road took 40,000 vehicles a day and its loss has caused disruption for people in the town and the wider region.

In response to questions from the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Coun Gannon said: “The future of the flyover structure has been under review for some time. It is unsightly, and a costly structure to maintain, and it runs contrary to our vision and ambition for a vibrant Gateshead town centre and wider regeneration plans for our towns and villages.

“That is why we have over the years considered bidding for various funding streams to help us achieve our ambition.

“We have looked at the flyover both from a regeneration perspective, as in what we want to achieve for this part of the town centre, including new housing and businesses, and purely in terms of transport infrastructure.

“To date we have not been able to secure funding which would allow us to demolish the flyover. The myriads of funding streams and the unwieldy bidding process for these have not been helpful, and we welcome new plans announced this week for such spending to be devolved to our combined authority.

“However, despite these knock backs, this has not stopped us from progressing and last year we commissioned independent structural engineers to look at the whole flyover structure and closely monitor it. It is this work which has led us to making the decision to close the highway last week, after reports showed decay beyond expected wear and tear.

“The decision to close the highway was not taken lightly but people’s safety must come first. We cannot and will not put people’s lives in danger, which would be the case if we kept the road open. That would be reckless.

“Now we have taken this step, we are in talks with Government ministers and the North East Combined Authority and other key partners on what we do next. We are working with the engineers on a business case for demolition and revitalisation, which we need to submit in the new year.

“This requires us to understand exactly what we need in terms of demolition and any replacement plans for the highway, including all the costs and timescales for such a project. This all takes time to complete but we are working at pace given the position we are now in.

“We are also reviewing whether we can partially re-open the road. Another option being looked at is whether we keep the road closed permanently in anticipation of it being demolished.

“Whatever we do next will not be a quick solution however, as this will require funding which we don’t have as a council and so need to seek elsewhere. It will also require specialist surveys, including asbestos surveys, and any delays which may occur because of moving utility services, for example.

“We want to reassure our residents that this is a key priority for the council, and we are leaving no stone unturned in terms of finding as swift a solution as possible which will ultimately benefit the whole borough, businesses and residents included.

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“If the flyover is removed, the opportunities to revitalise our town centre and increase developments will massively increase and that is the goal we want to aim for.

“I want to thank everyone again for their patience with us due to the emergency closure and for seeking alternative routes into Gateshead, whether using diversions, park and ride schemes or taking public transport. We are grateful this is happening. Gateshead is still very much open for business, and it’s important to ensure our businesses can still benefit from pre-Christmas trade.

“We will be updating our stakeholders and residents as plans progress as feedback on what is planned will be vital in us getting what we do next right for all concerned.”