The A12 will be widened between Chelmsford and Kelvedon following an announcement by Highways England.

The plans will see a 15-mile section of the road between junction 19 at Borhema and junction 23, between Rivernhall End and Kelvedon widened, in an attempt to reduce congestion.

The plans have been broadly welcomed, but there are still deep concerns about how uncertainty for a garden community is impacting the improvements further towards Colchester.

The announcement of the plan to upgrade the road has come ahead of what is believed to be a deadline for a decision on what should be done to the west of where the new homes may be built.

It means work on the A12 can start while plans for the new development for around 24,000 homes homes built at West Tey are under discussion.

The preferred route would widen the existing A12 corridor between junctions 19 and 23 to three lanes in each direction at key places, and would see a new three-lane bypass in each direction at Rivenhall End.

Highways England says it is committed to upgrading the whole stretch of the A12 between Chelmsford and Marks Tey.

And a further non-statutory consultation opened on Monday (October 20) to gather public feedback on four new routes running between junctions 23 and 25, that could be used if the proposed garden community does go ahead.

However James Abbott, who is chairman of Rivenhall Parish Council, as well as a county councillor, said he understood that if no decision is made on the West Tey garden community plan by spring next year, then a decision will be made to proceed on the basis of a consultation held in 2017, which envisaged a six-lane road south running parallel to the existing road.

He said: “The section between Chelmsford and Kelvedon through the areas I represent in Kelvedon and Rivenhall End has generally broad support for moving it.

“At the moment Rivenhall is basically currently cut in two and that can’t persist.

“Moving the A12 up to that point that has broad support.

“There are various environmental stresses and also the junctions are just plain dangerous and have been for some time.

“Subject to careful discussion with local communities, good junction design and significant environmental mitigation and very careful provision of the public transport and cycling that looks quite reasonable.”

In the latest consolation for the stretch between junctions  23 and 25, four options are being envisaged.

More work is being done to understand whether the road might require a fourth lane in each direction between junctions 23 and 24 to accommodate traffic if the nearby A120 improvements and proposed garden community do go ahead.

Cllr Abbott added: “The section which is controversial is the section from Feering to Marks Tey because that is predicated on the new town at West Tey.

“There are four options but they can’t decide which is the horse and which the cart.

“What comes first, the A12 or the garden communities? And that dilemma has run for ages.”

The A12 improvements are being tied in very closely with the county council’s plans  for a newly improved A120 route, which would create a modern dual carriageway link connecting Braintree and the A12.

Cllr Abbott added: “Why did the county council propose to move the A120 much further south…when the inspector said that certainty on the A120 and its relationship with West Tey were crucial?

“There’s are a lot of questions there.

“If the uncertainty with West Tey continues beyond spring 2020 they are going to proceed with the A12 on the basis of the 2017 consultation routes.

“They are going to say that’s enough we are progressing.”

The plans to consult have also been criticised by CAUSE – which has campaigned against the garden community development and says the move is premature.

“The Local Plan is not yet sound and tax-payers’ money should not be used to re-route a trunk road just to fit more houses in,” said a spokesperson for the group.