Leicestershire Council Names £131 Million Bypass Pork Pie Way After 65% Public Vote
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · May 14
Leicestershire Council Names £131 Million Bypass Pork Pie Way After 65% Public Vote
1 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 14
Pork Pie Way won 65% of 3,975 votes, and Leicestershire County Council formally unveiled the name for Melton Mowbray's new £131 million bypass at a Thursday ceremony.
The 4.4-mile route around the town's north and east is due to open in phases and be fully open to traffic by Monday, giving HGVs an alternative route and aiming to cut town-centre congestion and pollution.
Peta had urged the Reform UK-run council to choose Vegan Pie Way instead, calling Pork Pie Way "pig-demeaning," but council leader Dan Harrison dismissed that as "pie in the sky thinking."
Nearly £50 million of government money backed the scheme, which officials called the county's biggest highways project, though its final cost almost doubled from the original £63.5 million budget.
The bypass is also tied to long-term plans for 4,500 homes, while a proposed southern extension remains without a timetable and would depend on future developer contributions.
After a £131m budget blowout, can Pork Pie Way truly solve the traffic problems it was built to fix?
The public chose 'Pork Pie Way,' but did this democratic vote ignite an unwinnable culture war with animal rights activists?