Delay announced on opening of Melton bypass

Work on the North East Melton Mowbray Distributor Road (NEMMDR) – which will connect the A606 Nottingham road to the north before passing east of the town to link with the A606 Burton Road to the south – is half complete.

It was anticipated that the 7.1km single lane carriageway would be open late next year but cabinet members at Leicestershire County Council were told this morning (Friday) that it would not now open to traffic until early 2026.

The original cost of the NEMMDR was £63.5million but it then soared to just over £125million due to inflation and sharply rising construction costs.

Cabinet members heard today that the cost has gone up again with millions of pounds of contingency funding needing to be used and the prospect of even more money needed on top of that.

A report to the meeting on the latest situation with the NEMMDR, states: “This major scheme is a new 7.1km road construction around the North and East of Melton and is now approximately 50 per cent complete with a planned completion date of early 2026.

“The original budget, agreed by the cabinet in 2022, was £127.7m including a contingency of £11.6m which was held centrally.

“The latest forecast of scheme costs show that the contingency (held in earmarked reserves) is now required and this has been added to the scheme.

“There are, however, additional financial pressures and risks of up to £6m, which the project team are working with the contractor to reduce and mitigate.

“Cost pressures have arisen due to archaeological work being required, substantial ground soft spots, and adverse weather conditions leading to flooding along the new construction.”

The government agreed to fund £49.5million towards the project when the cost was £63.5million. County Hall agreed to forward fund most of the remainder before recouping it from developers building new housing developments in the town.

But the county council’s financial commitment has risen sharply with rapidly increasing build costs and no extra contribution from the government.