Councillors ponder CPO to push through £40m bypass

Herefordshire Council could seek compulsory purchase orders to get spades in the ground on Hereford’s long-awaited ring road.

The first phase of the heavily delayed project will see a new 2.2-mile southern link road built between the A49 and the A465, part of an eventual five-mile road around the west of the city which the authority says will play a “key role” in Hereford’s wider economic development.

The council’s cabinet will vote on moves to use compulsory purchase powers next week, despite ongoing discussions with seven land-owners along the route of the new bypass.

Herefordshire says its “preferred approach” remains acquiring the land through negotiation but should the vote pass, the council’s CPO process will run in parallel with those negotiations, a dual-track approach which it says will provide “certainty and momentum” for the project.

According to the cabinet report, the council has allocated £10.3m within its capital programme for the development of the scheme up to the construction phase, including land purchases. A further £30m of funding has been set aside to build the road.

Construction work is due to begin by the end of 2026.

Cllr Philip Price, Cabinet Member for Transport and Infrastructure said the vote represented an important step towards delivering what he described as “one of the most significant infrastructure projects in Herefordshire’s history.”

“When fully delivered, the Hereford Bypass will unblock congestion in the city and allow it to breathe; it will unlock growth potential for the whole county with new homes and employment land, and it will unleash Herefordshire’s future. The first phase will be the prerequisite of that vision,” he said.

“This latest milestone – a necessary and proportionate one – underlines this council’s commitment to improve resilience and transform connectivity for our residents and businesses. This is why we back the bypass. While we continue to work hard to reach voluntary agreements with landowners, the option of a CPO helps us keep the project on track.”

The scheme has been on the table for almost ten years, with planning permission for the first phase implemented in 2019. However the project was placed on the back burner in 2021 by a Green Party-led coalition council administration.

Designs for the scheme, along with approvals from Network Rail and National Highways are currently being finalised as part of the tendering process, with the construction phase contract for the three-year project due to be awarded next summer.

The council’s cabinet will discuss the recommendations on 18 December.