'Forgotten' Eastwood needs better transport links as councillors appeal to East Midlands mayor

Labour councillors Anne Ryan and Eileen Benton, who both sit on Eastwood Council, are preparing to submit their responses to East Midlands mayor Claire Ward’s (Lab) Big Transport Conversation.

And they want residents to let them know anything they want raising before the consulation ends on February 8.

Couns Ryan and Benton said: “We feel as if we are a forgotten area living on the border edges of the county.

"Better travel links for everyone in the north west of Nottingham, neighbouring Derbyshire, can only benefit us all.”

The Big Transport Conversation will help shape the next 15 years of regional transport strategy in the East Midlands with £121m being allocated to fund improving greener travel, reduce congestion, improve bus reliability and work on integrating rail and road links.

And Couns Ryan and Benton feel it is towns like Eastwood that need to benefit significantly from any future strategy, particularly for the sick, disabled or elderly.

They continued: “Eastwood no longer has a direct bus link to either Nottingham City Hospital or the Queens Medical Centre (QMC).

"Options rely on a combination of buses and, or, tram links.

"At present, the Rainbow 1 bus service which goes to Canning Circus, is not particularly reliable, and requires quite a walk to get a second bus to the QMC.

"Going to the City Hospital also requires two buses, travelling initially to the Victoria Centre and then picking up a city bus, or the Medilink bus to the City Hospital.

"For the sick and elderly, they are forced into using hospital transport, putting a strain on NHS funding or taxis, which can be extremely costly for local residents.

"This causes problems for staff, patients and visitors, so a direct bus link would be very useful.

“A connection point linking the bus services from Eastwood to Phoenix Park tram stop would be useful.

"At the moment buses stop on the main road outside the Phoenix Park, park and ride, but passengers have to cross a very busy dual carriageway to access the trams.

"It would be a simple matter to re-route buses into the Park and Ride access road, drive up to the roundabout by the Park and Ride entrance and have a new bus stop there.

"The benefit of this would mean that people without cars could then easily use the trams into Nottingham or Hucknall, all for the sake of one new bus stop adding a two minute detour.

"Benefits would alleviate the A 610 main road traffic into Nottingham, as well as encourage fewer people to use their cars.

"Not only would this give another travel option to people living on this side of Nottingham, it would also reduce traffic congestion and air pollution.

“It is felt, that at present, parts of Eastwood only have three buses a day that only drop off at Morrisons.

"Gaining access to the town’s high street, with its shops and cafes, can again only be accessed by crossing busy roads and traffic light systems, which becomes tiresome for the fit and a well nigh impossible obstacle course for the elderly and disabled.

“We would like to see a direct bus link from Nottingham city centre, through Nuthall, Kimberley and Eastwood to continue through Heanor to Derby.

"At present there is, more or less, a straight road running all the way from Nottingham, through these towns to Derby and yet the Derbyshire border, at Langley Mill, provides an impenetrable psychological barrier for efficient travelling from the north of Nottingham to the city of Derby.

"There are many links from the south of the city but not from Eastwood which is only half a mile to the Derbyshire border.

"At present we have to get the bus into Nottingham to come out again, take the car to Ilkeston station to get a train into Nottingham, then get another train to Derby, or or to Heanor then get a second bus from Heanor and round the houses to Derby.

"None of these routes are efficient, or conducive for shopping , jobs or entertainment.”

To take part directly in the Big Transport Conversation, visit eastmidlands-cca.gov.uk/mayors-transport-plan