(1)The Secretary of State may by order authorise the stopping up or diversion of any highway if he is satisfied that it is necessary to do so in order to enable development to be carried out in accordance with planning permission granted under Part III of this Act, or to be carried out by a government department.
(2)Any order under this section may make such provision as appears to the Secretary of State to be necessary or expedient for the provision or improvement of any other highway, and may direct—
(a)that any highway so provided or improved shall for the purposes of the [1959 c. 25.] Highways Act 1959 be a highway maintainable at the public expense;
(b)that the Secretary of State, or any local authority specified in that behalf in the order, shall be the highway authority for that highway;
(c)in the case of a highway for which the Secretary of State is to be the highway authority, that the highway shall, on such date as may be specified in the order, become a trunk road within the meaning of the Highways Act 1959.
(3)Any order made under this section may contain such incidental and consequential provisions as appear to the Secretary of State to be necessary or expedient, including in particular—
(a)provision for authorising the Secretary of State, or requiring any other authority or person specified in the order—
(i)to pay, or to make contributions in respect of, the cost of doing any work provided for by the order or any increased expenditure to be incurred which is attributable to the doing of any such work; or
(ii)to repay, or to make contributions in respect of, any compensation paid by the highway authority in respect of restrictions imposed under section 1 or 2 of the [1935 c. 47.] Restriction of Ribbon Development Act 1935 in relation to any highway stopped up or diverted under the order;
(b)provision for the preservation of any rights of statutory undertakers in respect of any apparatus of theirs which immediately before the date of the order is underpin, on, over, along or across the highway to which the order relates.
(4)An order may be made under this section authorising the stopping up or diversion of any highway which is temporarily stopped up or diverted under any other enactment.
(5)The provisions of this section shall have effect without prejudice to—
(a)any power conferred on the Secretary of State by any other enactment to authorise the stopping up or diversion of a highway;
(b)the provisions of section 3 of the [1946 c. 49.] Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) Act 1946; or
(c)the provisions of section 214(1)(a) of this Act.