The Department for Transport have this morning confirmed a financial commitment of over £18m to Suffolk for improving the transport infrastructure in the county town of Ipswich, following an application by Conservative run Suffolk County Council, with support from local MP, Ben Gummer.
Securing this crucial funding means that SCC’s highways team can now deliver the £21.5 million ‘Ipswich - Transport Fit for the 21st Century’ project by 2014. The project will tackle congestion, rebuild the bus stations and revamp the town centre to make it easier for people on foot and on bikes to get around.
Planned works will involve the transformation of the roundabout at Princes Street and Civic Drive into a junction with pedestrian crossings on the surface; more capacity, real time bus information, better seating and lighting at the Old Cattle Market and Tower Ramparts bus stations; and a new traffic control system for the whole town.
Today is a real milestone for improving the county town’s infrastructure to ensure that it can support the town’s economic recovery and growth whilst tackling traffic congestion, encouraging even more opportunities for a sustainable future.
"In such a tight economic climate, to have won such a significant investment for Ipswich is a tribute to the hard work by the County Council and its team of officers over the last couple of years," says John Carnall, Leader of the Conservative Group at Ipswich Borough Council.