In a delegated decision, Plymouth City Council has approved a contract to Balfour Beatty for ground investigation surveys related to the A38 Manadon Interchange. The decision, made by Paul Barnard, Service Director for Strategic Planning and Infrastructure, aims to gather essential data for the next design stage and improve the local road network. The project aligns with the council's corporate plan, addressing congestion, supporting economic growth, and promoting sustainable transport.

A38 Manadon Interchange Ground Investigations (Phase 2)

Paul Barnard, Service Director for Strategic Planning and Infrastructure, approved recommendations to award a contract to Balfour Beatty to undertake ground investigation surveys in and around the local road network of the A38 Manadon Interchange. This decision, referenced as COD 03 25/26, supports the next stage of design for improvements to the local Plymouth City Council network.

The reasons for the decision are outlined in the report:

To undertake essential Ground Investigation surveys that will provide the data to inform the next stage of design and underpin the areas of improvement on the local PCC network.

The council considered and rejected the alternative option of not awarding the contract, as this would mean essential information would not be available to progress the design of the scheme.

The cost of the contract is £1,482,816.03, which has already been accounted for in the approved capital project budget, approved by the cabinet on 7 July 2025.

The A38 Manadon Interchange is a key junction connecting the A38 trunk road to the A386 Tavistock Road, the primary route to the Derriford area, and Outland Road and Mannamead Road from the City Centre. The Plymouth and South West Devon Joint Local Plan 2014-2034 identifies Derriford and the Northern Corridor as a Growth Area because of its potential to deliver a regionally significant scale of growth in new jobs and new homes. The interchange experiences significant congestion and delays, particularly at peak times, making it one of the worst-performing junctions on the South West Strategic Road Network.

The project aims to increase capacity on all arms of the junction and provide significant improvements to walking and cycling facilities, including a new cycle bridge across the A38.

The scheme delivers on the following priorities from the corporate plan:

• Build more homes for social rent and affordable ownership.
• Fewer potholes, cleaner, greener streets and transport.
• Green investment, jobs, skills, and better education.

The A38 Manadon Interchange scheme would incorporate high-quality infrastructure for walking and cycling, including a new cycle bridge over the A38, which will provide a step-change in facilities. The scheme would reduce journey times for buses on the major bus corridor linking the City Centre to northern Plymouth and will reduce carbon emissions from vehicle transport. Environmental enhancements are included as an integral part of the scheme, through the opening up of areas of greenspace, and providing extensive landscaping and tree-planting.

Equality Impact Assessment

An Equality Impact Assessment (EqIA) was conducted for the A38 Manadon Interchange development funding. The assessment concluded that the decision has no potential to negatively impact service users, communities, residents with protected characteristics, or Plymouth City Council employees. The scheme is still at an early stage, and further decisions may require a full EqIA submission as the scheme progresses.

Climate Impact Assessment

A Climate Impact Assessment (CIA) was conducted for the A38 Manadon Interchange development funding. The assessment considered various factors, including biodiversity, GHG emissions¹, renewable energy, ocean and waterways, air quality, materials and waste, and climate change adaptation.

The assessment highlighted the following:

• Biodiversity: The scheme requires small-scale localised losses of habitats, but with replacement planting, the biodiversity effect can be mitigated, and there is potential to achieve a beneficial impact.
• GHG Emissions: The assessment calculated a decrease in non-traded carbon (38,371 tonne reduction) and traded carbon (335 tonne reduction) over the 60-year appraisal period, resulting in carbon benefits of £2,795,194.
• Air Quality: The air quality assessment concludes that for all receptors within the Plymouth Air Quality Management Area (AQMA), changes in NO2 are imperceptible or small, with concentrations of NO2 below the objective threshold of 40μg/m3 in all cases. Similarly for PM10, the change in concentration is negligible or small, with total concentrates below the threshold in all cases. It is therefore concluded that the scheme will have a negligible impact on the Plymouth AQMA.
• Education / Engagement / Enabling Conditions: The scheme will provide significant improvements for active travel modes to allow safe, direct, segregated access through the junction, removing the current gap in provision across the A38.

The design and implementation of the scheme have considered the environment throughout the scheme development processes, and the proposals include environmental enhancements, including improved connectivity to and within areas of green-space for the local community, and extensive landscaping and tree planting. The proposals aim to meet high environmental standards, through biodiversity net gain allowances, carbon impacts, and full consideration of other environmental impacts.