Thorpe Park’s proposed rollercoaster for 2024 will go ahead after the UK government declined to intervene.
The Environment Agency (EA)’s unresolved objections over flooding meant that the local authority had to give the Secretary of State the opportunity to ‘call-in’ the application.
In a letter issued on Tuesday, the department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities said it had decided not to intervene.
“The Secretary of State has decided not to call in this application. He is content that it should be determined by the local planning authority,” it read.
The 236-foot (72-metre) tall rollercoaster will be the tallest in the United Kingdom, beating Blackpool Pleasure Beach’s Big One by 23 feet (7 metres).
It would also be the UK’s fastest such ride if its theoretical 81 mph design is realised, overtaking Thorpe Park’s own Stealth rollercoaster by a single mile per hour.
Currently dubbed ‘Project Exodus’, the new rollercoaster was initially planned to open in March 2024.
Back in September, and during ongoing concerns from the EA, Thorpe Park’s planners said that further delays could compromise plans for the ride to be completed by that time.