A1(T) Elkesley Junction Improvements - Highways Agency

• rolling landforms with numerous dry valleys;• large amounts of woodland, particularly oak/birch broad-leaved woodland andconifers;• extensive, enclosed, arable farmlands with rectilinear field patterns divided bylow, treeless hedges;• strong contrasts between open arable fields and woodland;• narrow river corridors with pasture, flood meadows and woodland, often insharp contrast to the adjacent arable farmland; and• buildings of local sandstone with older building materials being generally redbrick and pantile.These elements are indicative of the landscape character associated with the locality,the proposed junction located on the rise of a shallow rolling landform inpredominantly arable farmland where the A1(T) borders the village of Elkesley.Elkesley occupies the low-lying floodplain of the River Poulter; an extensive area ofwooded river corridor which provides a green backdrop to the village along itssouthern edge. To the north and west of the village the land use is predominantlygentle rolling arable landscape consisting of medium-sized fields divided by wellmaintained hedges. The A1(T) runs along the northern edge of the village and is thedominant feature of the surrounding landscape. The road corridor is dualcarriageway in construction with some boundary vegetation of scrub and hedgerowtrees. Generally, views from the corridor are onto the surrounding arable farmlandwith more distant views northwards across a rolling landform.The village is centred along a High Street which runs parallel to the A1(T), and islined with numerous historic red-brick buildings. There are intermittent views of theA1(T) through breaks in the property boundary along the High Street but generallythe road is well screened from the core of the village.The following subdivisions of local landscape character are abstracted from theElkesley Stage 2 Environmental Report by Mouchel and RPS, 2006. Their extentsare illustrated in the attached annex: Figure 7.1: Landscape and Visual Effects Map.Area A: Open Undulating Arable Farmland (Good Quality Landscape of Medium Value)To the north and east of the A1(T) corridor lies an open, flat, intermediate scalearable landscape of good quality punctuated by rivers and settlements. Regularmedium sized fields are bounded by well maintained predominantly thorn hedges,with occasional blocks of woodland. An over-mature pine windbreak is a verydistinctive and characteristic feature of the open, arable landscape. The area isconsidered to be of high sensitivity with limited capacity to accommodate change.Area B: Gamston Aerodrome (Poor Quality Landscape of Low Value)The southern part of the area comprises light industrial land uses adjacent to theA1(T) corridor. All traces of the surrounding landscape pattern have been removed in45