Doncaster's £56m road scheme

Work has started on the £56m Doncaster relief road which has angered some environmental campaigners but which is expected to bring thousands of jobs to a deprived part of our region.

The road will link the M18 motorway to Robin Hood Airport at Doncaster - the first phase of one of Yorkshire's most ambitious regeneration projects.

But councillors have been forced to defend their decision to allow the road to be built through green belt land. David Hirst reports.

Work on a £56 million pound relief road has started today but not without controversy. The road which will link the M18 motorway to Robin Hood airport at Doncaster has angered some environmental campaigners.

But councillors have been forced to defend their decision to allow the road to be built through green belt land. David Hirst reports

The Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, has been addressing civic and business leaders at the start of work on a £56 million road which will link the M18 motorway to Robin Hood airport.

The Mayor described the scheme as a "game changer" which will bring benefits to South Yorkshire, including thousands of new jobs and homes. The new road scheme should be finished in two years and is part of a much bigger scheme to open a new £400 million inland port in Doncaster.

Airport managers say they expect passenger numbers to rise from 750,000 a year to between 3 and 4 million. The Finningley and Rossington route will cut journey times and provide a crucial link to a new £400 million inland port which will be built close to the site of the former Rossington Colliery.

One of the biggest transformational road building schemes in Doncaster's history is underway. The £56m new Finningley and Rossington route will take around two years to complete.

The new link from Junction 3 of the M18 will be instrumental in supporting the expansion of services at Robin Hood Airport and provide the infastructure for a new housing development on the former Rossington Colliery site plus an innovative rail freight interchange.

It will create thousands of new jobs and homes to boost the regional economy.

The biggest roadworks project in Doncaster's history has started. The fifty six million pound Finningley and Rossington route will take around two years to complete.