A BID to transform junction 10 of the M5 has the firm backing of Cheltenham Borough Council.
The Echo has been campaigning to change the crucial interchange from a two-way junction into a four-way one to boost business and ease congestion.
And now the leader of the council, Councillor Steve Jordan (LD, All Saints), is firmly on board, not only in urging action for the M5 but also in supporting plans to improve Tewkesbury Road – one of the main routes into Cheltenham.
The Highways Agency is planning to undertake repairs to the junction's 40-year-old Piff Elm Bridge at an estimated cost of £13 million later this year.
And highways bosses have said that while they do not have time to arrange a full revamp at the moment, likely to cost a similar amount, they will consider it in the future.
A business case is now being put together with the agency's help.
Mr Jordan said: "They cannot do the repairs and the improvements at the same time but the Highways Agency has said it is prepared to present the case to improve junction 10 and we have said that we will support that. It is the sensible thing to do.
"Tewkesbury Borough Council has taken the lead on this and they organised the meeting earlier this year attended by the Highways Agency, Gloucestershire Highways, MPs and councils.
"The Highways Agency has now agreed to support us to put together the case to get the funding needed.
"Junction 10 is a key piece of infrastructure, just in terms of ease of access.
"There has been the idea of having an employment hub around junction 10 and for that to be an option you would need to have decent access and this would make that possible.
"It would also just make it easier for people to get around."
Meanwhile, Tewkesbury Road, the A4019 which links the M5 with Cheltenham, is in the sights of the Cheltenham Development Task Force, the organisation charged with regenerating the town.
The group has identified the road as a target for improvement in the coming years to make it a more attractive 'gateway' to Cheltenham.
Mr Jordan welcomed the idea.
He said: "It is about trying to make Tewkesbury Road a more attractive entrance to the town – it is not about making the road wider at the moment."
As to the state of the road currently, Mr Jordan said that it was "a matter of opinion" if people thought the road was "ugly" but that was the issue that had been raised.
OPINION, P8