Hereford’s £27 million link road "in the hands" of RM

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Hereford’s £27 million link road "in the hands" of Royal Mail

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DELIVERY of Hereford’s £27 million link road is now in the hands of Royal Mail, Herefordshire Council has been told.

If the council and Royal Mail can agree on a move for the Station Approach sorting office then the road moves ahead.

But the council has been warned that a compulsory purchase order (CPO) on the site was likely to see Royal Mail “protecting its position”.

In March, the Hereford Times revealed Royal Mail was not ready to make way for any Commercial Road-Edgar Street link road unless a move from Station Approach – right on the road’s route – cost “absolutely nothing”.

At the full council last Friday Councillor Mark Hubbard asked for an update on negotiations between the council and Royal Mail and estimates of how much any eventual deal might cost.

Coun Hubbard said issues around Royal Mail’s move represented a major risk to the road.

Councillor Graham Powell, cabinet member for infrastructure, said that a meeting in October saw Royal Mail “reconfirming” support for the scheme in principle and working with the council to agree options for the re-provision of facilities currently at Station Approach.

“However, once a CPO is published, it could be expected that Royal Mail would be likely to lodge an objection to protect its position until formal agreement is reached regarding the delivery of any agreed works,” said Coun Powell.

The agreement reached in principle did not represent a risk to the road, he said.

The council was told that the cost of any deal would be subject to commercial negotiations and agreement with Royal Mail regarding the extent of works required to meet its operational requirements.

The budget for the scheme remains at £27m with cost estimates subject to regular review.