New Trent crossing should be in Bassetlaw, says councillor

DEBATE OVER CITY'S FOURTH ROAD BRIDGE MOVES 18 MILES DOWNSTREAM

- By JOE LOCKER

COUNCILLORS are questioning where a proposed fourth bridge over the River Trent should be built.

Nottingham is currently served by Lady Bay Bridge, Clifton Bridge, and Trent Bridge, but local politicians have argued that a fourth road bridge would help further relieve traffic jams across the city and beyond.

While a crossing at Trent Basin is currently being built by Nottingham City Council for cyclists and pedestrians, the last road bridge was built decades ago.

In March, before Reform took control of Nottinghamshire County Council from the Conservatives, money was allocated for a study into a fourth bridge over the river at Colwick. But during a full council meeting on Thursday, a location further to the north of the county - in Bassetlaw - was suggested by a Reform councillor.

Nottinghamshire county councillor Mike Robertson, who represents the Misterton division, said there is only one bridge over the Trent within an 18-mile radius in that part of the county.

The existing single-carriageway Flood Road bridge connects Beckingham in Nottinghamshire to Gainsborough in Lincolnshire. Councillor Robertson said the road was closed in 2024 when the river breached its banks, causing significant traffic problems - and added a crossing in the area could better serve the planned STEP nuclear fusion power plant in West Burton.