By Judith Tonner
Copyright dailyrecord
New details have been revealed of the route and connections of the £185 million East Airdrie link road (EALR) as a new month-long public consultation gets underway. Updates to plans for the 10-kilometre route from Newhouse to Riggend – which will be the access road to the new Monklands Hospital – include re-routing a section away from a valued ancient woodland, constructing and upgrading three roundabouts with traffic signals, and providing a replacement sports pitch at Caldervale High where an existing grass field will become part of the road network. Public drop-in events are taking place throughout October at Airdrie, Chapelhall and Cumbernauld libraries, along with a special session at the Towers Road secondary school focusing on a new local route connecting to the main link road, plus planned traffic calming for the area. Responses from previous public engagement programmes in November 2024 and again in June have been incorporated into the latest plans, with officials saying “several changes have been made” and adding: “This ensures it better integrates with local roads, improves access and active travel connections and lessens the impact on land, ecology, landscape and woodland.” The project website adds: “Following feedback from the previous consultation, the road alignment through Dunsyston Woods has been changed [with[ ancient woodland was avoided in developing the EALR alignment. The level of the road has been raised to accommodate equestrian access at the proposed active travel underpass, which provides clearance of 3.7m [and] will ensure that connectivity is maintained between Stepends Road, Roughrigg Road and Dunsyston Woods.” In relation to the busy Towers Road area in Airdrie, it states: “A series of road safety improvement measures are being considered for Petersburn Road between Bankhead Avenue and Towers Road; Towers Road between Petersburn Road and Varnsdorf Way; and change of priority at the junction of Petersburn Road and Varnsdorf Way. subject to further consultation with the community.” A new additional local road is proposed, running from a new signalised roundabout at Towers Road beside Caldervale High, across existing farmland and past the new hospital site on current farmland at Wester Moffat, joining the main EALR route north-east of the existing Inver House distillery. North Lanarkshire Council’s project website states: “The Towers Road link will provide more direct local traffic and active travel connections to the new Monklands hospital and Stepends Road; it incorporates a new signalised roundabout at the junction of Towers Road/Varnsdorf Way and a bridge over the North Calder Water.” “As the proposed Towers Road link impacts the existing grass playing field at Caldervale High, several options are being considered for a replacement facility within the school’s grounds and will support delivery of the school’s curriculum – further consultation will take place with the school and the community.” The plans also show proposals for traffic calming on Petersburn and Towers Roads plus a pedestrian crossing on Varnsdorf Way at the junction with Glen Road. Maps on the project website also indicate an upgraded roundabout with traffic lights at the A73 and Lancaster Avenue junction which will form the southern end of the new single-carriageway route, along with two bridges over watercourses including Shotts Burn. There would also be roundabout links at Craigens Road connecting to a realigned Gartness Road; at Forrest Street in Clarkston; and at realigned Greengairs and Brackenhirst Roads near the northern end of the route, which bypasses Stand and Riggend before joining the existing A73 towards Cumbernauld and the M80. Now a further public consultation is underway in relation to the revised proposals – with feedback to be compiled ahead of finalising the project proposals in November and then officially submitting the planning application the following month, with a view to two years of construction work beginning in 2028. The first consultation event is at Caldervale High from 5pm to 7pm on Thursday, October 2, and will “focus on the Towers Road link and associated improvements to the local road network”. Drop-in sessions will then take place at Airdrie library on October 7; Chapelhall library on October 9; and Cumbernauld library on October 21, all from 2pm to 7pm and offering the chance to speak to members of the project team and complete feedback forms as part of the engagement process, which runs until October 26. The link road project is being led by North Lanarkshire Council as part of the Glasgow city region city deal, and forms part of the pan-Lanarkshire orbital transport corridor. It will provide access to Lanarkshire’s new acute hospital – scheduled to open in 2031 – as well as improving “journey times and transport reliability; connections between residential areas, town centres, business centres, employment and education; and air quality, by relieving congestion along the existing A73”. Councillors were told last year how the projected cost had soared “very significantly”, more than doubling since the original 2014 estimate of £85.7m, “due to changes in programme, more detailed information on ground conditions and further design work, high inflation, scale of the infrastructure with significant cost rises in road development and particularly bridges and structures, and additional design work to accommodate the replacement Monklands Hospital”. The latest plans and online feedback form are at www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/regeneration-and-investment/glasgow-city-region-city-deal/pan-lanarkshire-orbital-transport-corridor/east-airdrie-link-road/ealr-consultation * Don’t miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here . And did you know Lanarkshire Live is on Facebook ? Head on over and give us a like and share!
