Sizewell C update from Walberswick Parish Council
The impact of Sizewell C is now dawning on all those who live in Coastal Suffolk. It is impossible to miss the destruction to vegetation at places like Yoxford, Theberton, Leiston and Darsham which give an indication of the massive scale of the development that will befall us for the next 10-20 years. And all this before Lionlink and other off-shore cables try to build at the same time with no coordination amongst any of these projects. While we continue to fight these inappropriate and destructive projects, WPC is participating in the various working groups and forums that have been set up to help mitigate some of the most damaging impacts on transport and the road network. These include the Northern Transport Forum and the B1125 Working Group.
The B1125 Working Group has been the most active to date. Together with Blythburgh and Westleton Parish Councils, various schemes are being developed to limit and slow the thousands of extra vehicles that will attempt to use the B1125 during the SZC construction. Westleton will have a range of traffic calming measures including speed cameras. At our northern end, the Parish Councils and Suffolk Highways have agreed to close the B1125 at the water tower junction to keep thousands of vehicles from going through Blythburgh and past the Walberswick Road on their way to Sizewell or rat running to escape the A12. Without this closure, it would become nearly impossible to safely leave or enter the road to Walberswick. The closure of the B1125 will be accompanied by improvements in the B1387 between the water tower and the A12 so as to widen and end the flooding that now impacts that stretch of the road. It will also include right and left turnings from the B1137 on to the A12 to control tailbacks and safety. We are also arguing strenously for a right turn lane from the A12 into the B1387 to avoid long tailbacks and improve the safety of this turning.
Meanwhile, the Northern Transport Forum has gotten a commitment from SZC and Suffolk Highways to move the parking for the Darsham Station to a place north of the station itself to provide safer access to the train station especially as the massive Park and Ride for SZC at Darsham will see thousands of cars and coaches going over the Darsham train crossing 24 hours a day. More details on this will be developed over the course of 2025/26.
The WPC will provide regular updates via our website and the Village News. SZC is legally mandated to regularly post the many road closures, diversions and movements of Abnormal Loads on their website and also to investigate traffic related issues that are reported to them by members of the public. Please see: https://www.szcworkstracker.co.uk/latest-info/
Walberswick Parish Council