Levelling Up
Levelling Up Fund
Re-routing of the A68 to by-pass Toft Hill and High Etherley
Durham County Council has released details relating to the recent Public Consultation which can be found using the following link: letstalkcountydurham.co.uk/en-GB/projects/toft-hill-bypass-consultation
You may also be interested in using the link below which takes you to a recent BBC News article giving further details on the proposals for a by-pass www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8d4q8dy49yo
Levelling up Fund:
The County Council was awarded £20 million in the first round of the Level Up Fund which will help in delivering a heritage corridor masterplan focussed on the visitor attraction Locomotion in Shildon and the Stockton and Darlington Railway Line.
It will also allow the re-routing of the A68 at Toft Hill, creating a new 1.6-kilometre bypass away from the village centre to help to improve journey times, reduce traffic and improve road safety through the village.
Whorlton Bridge, the UK's oldest road suspension bridge in Teesdale, will also benefit. The bridge has been closed to all users since December 2020, but with funding now in place to support the necessary works, it is planned to reopen in summer 2023. A visitor centre will be developed as part of the works, allowing users to celebrate the bridge's transport heritage.
The link below gives access to the full 'Levelling up Statement' released by Durham County Council in December 2021