YEARS of uncertainty over a proposed link road in Crediton ended on Wednesday (January 18) when Devon County Council unanimously granted planning permission for the scheme.

The county council's development management committee gave the go-ahead to the long-awaited scheme, subject to legal agreements being secured with the Downes Estate and English Heritage, for additional landscaping.

The proposed £7.75 million link road provides a direct 760-metre single carriageway link from Wellpark roundabout on the A377, over Downes Head and into Marsh Lane within the Lords Meadow Industrial Estate.

Crediton is a designated Air Quality Management Area and the Link Road forms a key part of Mid Devon District Council's Air Quality Action Plan.

The scheme aims to reduce congestion and improve air quality along Exeter Road and also Charlotte Street, East Street and Mill Street, as well as supporting economic growth by improving accessibility to the Lords Meadow Industrial Estate.

At Wednesday's meeting, representatives from Crediton Town Council, Mid Devon District Council and the Crediton Traffic Action Group all spoke in support of the plans before councillors voted unanimously in favour.

Councillor James McInnes, chairman of the county's development management committee, said: "This has been going on for many years now and I was delighted that the community has come together to support this application and that the committee voted unanimously in favour.