A66 Northern Trans-Pennine

We'll be improving the A66 between the M6 at Penrith and A1 at Scotch Corner. The project will involve upgrading single carriageway sections of road to dual carriageway standard and making improvements to the junctions along the route.

Start date TBC

End date TBC

Cost TBC

Latest updates

23 June 2020

Surveys and investigations

Now we have announced the preferred route, we will carry out further surveys and investigations to help us design the scheme in more detail. Once Government restrictions on social distancing are lifted, you may start to notice some activity in the area as begin these surveys.

We plan to consult on the design of the road and the junctions in 2021, giving you a further opportunity to share your views with us. Throughout the process we will keep listening and talking to everyone with an interest in the project. There will also be regular updates and information on this webpage.

Development Consent Order process (DCO)

The A66 Northern Trans-Pennine project is known as a Nationally Significant Project (NSIP). This means that we must apply for a Development Consent Order (DCO) to proceed with the project.

This short video gives more information about the process behind the DCO and how we build roads.
23 June 2020
Preferred route announcement

Following a busy consultation in summer 2019, we have now announced the preferred route for dualling the remaining single carriageway sections of the A66 between Penrith and Scotch Corner.

The A66 is both a nationally important road, linking the M6 at Penrith in Cumbria with the A1(M) at Scotch Corner in North Yorkshire, and a key regional route. As well as benefiting local people the upgrade will support tourism and freight traffic, improving connections between ports in Scotland and Northern Ireland and those in England at Hull and Felixstowe.

The proposed route includes six new bypasses as well as an underpass at the congested Kemplay Bank roundabout near Penrith. We’ve selected the following options to bypass existing sections of the route or provide dualling alongside the existing single carriageway road:
- A northern bypass of a three-mile section between Penrith and Temple Sowerby
- The northern bypass option for Kirkby Thore
- The most northerly of two options bypassing Crackenthorpe
- Taking forward the single option to dual a five-mile section between Appleby and Brough alongside the existing section of single carriageway
- Similarly, converting a 1.9-mile section of the route north of Bowes – the current, single carriageway Bowes bypass - into a dual carriageway
- A bypass south of the Old Rectory between Cross Lane and Rokeby instead of a conversion which would have required demolishing buildings
- The most northerly of three bypass options linking sections of existing dual carriageway between Stephen Bank and Carkin Moor
The proposals also include significant improvements to the existing junctions between Barnard Castle and the A66 at Bowes and Rokeby. These will improve safety at the two junctions and make for safer, smoother journeys for HGVs. The options we have selected were the most popular among the hundreds of people who responded to last year’s public consultation.

All of the villages being bypassed will benefit from the removal of high volumes of traffic, including HGVs, from the existing road as well as improved community connectivity. Pedestrians, cyclists, and horse riders will also benefit from the upgrade which will reduce collisions, competition from other vehicles and associated congestion along one of the most important commercial routes in the north of the United Kingdom.

You can find out more about this announcement and view the proposed route in our Preferred Route brochure. You can also view our Options Consultation Report to see how we addressed the feedback received.

If you think your property will be affected by our proposals, you can find out more information by reading our property and compensation leaflets below:
View preferred route map.

See more updates

Project information

The A66 is a key national and regional strategic link for a range of traffic movements for east/west journeys in the North of England and provides vital connections for freight and businesses in the regions.

The A66 carries high levels of freight traffic, accounting for 25% heavy goods vehicles (HGV’s) compared to the national average figure of 12%. The A66 is also an important route for tourism, providing access to the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and the Lake District National Park.

The A66 is essential to the continued development of the economy in the north of the country. Investigations are underway to examine the case for dualling the road and making other improvements along its length in order to support future local and national growth and development.

Development Consent Order process (DCO)

The A66 Northern Trans-Pennine project is known as a Nationally Significant Project (NSIP). This means that we must apply for a Development Consent Order (DCO) to proceed with the project.

This short video gives more information about the process behind the DCO and how we build roads.

Scotch Corner is of national significance, and was associated with the Iron Age oppidum (or tribal centre) at Stanwick a short distance to the north west.

Work in the northern section of the site identified an industrial area where huge quantities of coin pellet mould were discovered. The pellets produced in the moulds would have been used to produce coinage, and this represents the first evidence for this kind of activity in this area.

You can read more about some of the items that were found on our web page.

A66 Northern Trans-Pennine project provides the opportunity to:

improve journey times, reliability and resilience on the A66 between the junctions with the A1 and M6
improve strategic regional and national connectivity, particularly for freight and tourism
aim to reduce delays at the A66/A6 junction
aim to reduce physical barriers for communities
aim to improve air quality and noise for those that live and work along the route
improve connectivity between key employment areas of Cumbria, Tees Valley and Tyne and Wear areas
improve connectivity for residents and workforce living and working in close proximity, and improve amenities for cyclists and pedestrians
improve access to key tourist destinations such as the North Pennines and the Lake District
contribute to the future economic growth of the north of England, supporting the growth envisaged by the Northern Powerhouse