Redcar Western Connectivity: Town Centre via Teesworks and Grangetown

Teesworks, located between the River Tees and Trunk Road to the west of Redcar town centre, is an important hub for economic growth and regeneration in Tees Valley. Home to the Teesworks Skills Academy and new industry and job opportunities, it sees significant daily traffic as workers commute to and from the area. As the area is redeveloped and new investment is attracted many more people will travel in and out of the area. The walking, wheeling, and cycling links between Redcar, Teesworks, South Bank and Grangetown are not continuous or high quality, and they need to be improved to ensure they are safe and suitable for people now and in the future.

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Redcar Western Connectivity:  Town Centre via Teesworks and Grangetown

Redcar town centre is an important hub for shoppers, workers, and visitors, with key locations including Redcar Central Station, Redcar Racecourse, Redcar & Cleveland College, and Redcar Hospital. Redcar town centre is already transforming, using money secured through the Government’s Town Deal. This will fund major improvements to deliver a better town centre.

Teesworks to the west, is the largest freeport in the United Kingdom. It covers the large area of land previously occupied by the former Redcar Steelworks, which closed in 2015. Now, Teesworks is an important site for economic growth and regeneration in Tees Valley with new industry, innovation, and job opportunities. It is also home to the Teesworks Skills Academy linking job seekers with new opportunities. Teesworks sees significant daily traffic as lots of workers commute to and from the area.

Located 5 miles southwest of Redcar (along Trunk Road and the A66) South Bank marks the westernmost point of Teesworks and is experiencing substantial growth, particularly with the development of the South Bank Quay. This exciting ongoing construction project aims to provide over 500 acres of development land focused on the offshore energy sector, becoming a really important place for promising thousands of new jobs and helping the whole region grow. There are separate plans recently announced to improve South Bank railway station in future.

Journeys between Redcar town centre, Teesworks and South Bank are not great for people walking, wheeling, cycling, or using the bus. The main route is on the A66 and Trunk Road, passing through Grangetown and South Bank. Providing better connections from local residential areas will improve access to education and employment opportunities across the Tees Valley. Improved connections will help attract investment and allow more people to access jobs at Teesworks and the South Bank Quay.

Current issues between Redcar, Teesworks and Grangetown

We have identified the following transport issues along this route:

• The Trunk Road is a high–speed busy road which can feel unsafe for walkers, wheelers, and cyclists. 
• There is a footpath, but in places this is narrow and very close to the road and does not meet current standards.
• There are some sections of shared use cycle path along Trunk Road but in areas these are narrow. There are no dedicated, segregated cycle paths.
• The poor walking, wheeling, and cycling links are limiting access to Teesworks job opportunities and the Skills Academy for people without a car.
• There can be delays to buses on the approach to Redcar town centre.
• Potential future congestion resulting from redevelopment at Teesport and South Bank. 

If you think there are other issues along this route, please let us know on the feedback form. 

Opportunities 

Here are some opportunities that may help address the issues on this route:

• Introduce new segregated cycle lanes along the Trunk Road, creating one continuous route from Redcar town centre to South Bank and Grangetown via Teesworks.
• Improve paths for walking and wheeling along the Trunk Road.
• Introduce safer road crossings for walkers, wheelers, and cyclists.
• Improve signage to help walkers, wheelers, and cyclists know where they are going.

Other types of transport opportunities could include:

• Bus priority measuresto give buses priority over other vehicles.
• Improve the layout of junctions and roads to make it safer for all users.
• Implement intelligent traffic management systems to reduce overall congestion and improve traffic flow.

Benefits 

These may offer the following benefits:

• Safer and more attractive journeys to empower more people to walk, wheel, and cycle.
• Dedicated paths for cyclists mean they do not need to share road space on the busy high-speed road or share space with walkers and wheelers reducing conflicts with other road users.
• Improved walking, wheeling, and cycling links between Redcar and Grangetown.
• Safer walking, wheeling, and cycling crossings.
• Contributes to the delivery of a full and connected network of cycle routes across Redcar and Cleveland.
• Bus priority would mean quicker journey times for buses.
• Reduced congestion could result in more reliable journeys for all vehicles.
• Improved air quality through reduced congestion.

Impacts 

We recognise that there may be some impacts, these could include:

• May reduce available space for other road users to make space for walking, wheeling, and cycle paths.
• Existing grass verges may need to be reduced.
• Cars and other vehicles may have to wait slightly longer at junctions.

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