REDDITCH folk are this week being invited to Redditch Town Hall for consultation on options for a bypass around Studley.

The display follows a recent exhibition of 10 potential traffic improvement schemes at Studley Village Hall, which drew 2,700 people, including many from Redditch.

A bypass to alleviate congestion in and around Studley has been mooted for almost 50 years.

Plans for a dual carriageway running from Alcester to the west of Studley and then to the east of Redditch up to Gorcott Hill were unveiled in the early 1990s but the scheme was later dropped by the Government.

Consultant traffic engineers Halcrow Fox have now compiled nine other potential plans, including routes to the east of Studley, "mini" by-passes and traffic calming measures in conjunction with improved public transport.

Redditch Highways Partnership Unit manager Jim Casey said if the original bypass was given the go-ahead it could cut traffic through Astwood Bank by 35 per cent and traffic along The Slough by 77 per cent.

County councillor Tom Wareing, who sits on the highways partnership, stressed the importance of Redditch people attending the display.

He said: "People that live in the south and east of Redditch and Astwood Bank must attend to see the options and I would suggest that they look at them very carefully.

"I would say that it's very important that we support the original route planned in the nineties and anything less is folly.

"Some of the other options would throw traffic into Astwood Bank and Crabbs Cross and onto the Redditch road system and make traffic even worse."

The display will continue until Friday.