Urgent: Objection to Planning Application for 360 Dwellings at Sandleford West: 23/01585/OUTMAJ and

Hello,  if you haven't already got around to submitting an objection to the Warren Road proposal then please see a couple of points that you may wish to send to planapps@westberks.gov.uk.  As usual the timings are tight and planning applications are always over times when people are away, the deadline has passed but the planning department will take late submissions but they must arrive soon! Thanks as always, Julie

·       Construction Traffic HGV Access route , route geography: The A343 from the A34 entry/exit junction at Wash Water is classed as a “local access route” on the West Berkshire Freight Route Plan (2009).  This route is called the “Green Gateway” to Newbury in the Local Plan and has a dominant residential design of properties with road frontage.  The route includes Falkland Primary School, a Community Hall, Pre-school, 2 Churches and Park House Secondary School – our community hub.  The geography of this proposed route involves many cul-de-sacs, forcing vulnerable pedestrian road users onto the Andover Road to travel to the community hub.  An alternative HGV Construction Access Route must be found for road safety reasons.

·       Road safety: “Deliveries will be restricted where possible to the inter-peak period ie, 0930-1500 hours”.  The vehicles will include “Mobile crane, articulated lorry 25t to 32t skip lorry, and articulated lorries, 7.5-26t rigid lorries and LGVs”.  These will be in greater numbers during “the fit out”.  These vehicles will add to pollution around our children’s schools and endanger children in a “20mph when flashing” school zone.  Within previous applications, limits were agreed at 15 Construction Traffic HGVs per hour (1 every 4 minutes).  This must be agreed in advance and upheld throughout the development over the 8 years.  The current plan around school times does not allow sufficient time to clear the vulnerable pedestrians from the area and is likely to coincide with the children travelling to and from school from 0800-1800 throughout the day (including school hours, after school clubs , the pre-school and out-of-hours school care).    An alternative HGV Construction Access Route must be found as HGVs do not have a sufficient turning circle to use the Warren Road Access junction as they travel back to the A34 via the Andover Road.  

·       The Design and Access Statement is not realistic, visibility splays are not sufficient and vehicle movements are not possible without endangering vulnerable road users, many of whom are children.