Testun llawn:
I am writing to object to the draft Local Plan and to the RDS.
I have major concerns about the proposals. My points are as follows:
1. Widening the roads opposite Warwick School and down Myton Road will not prevent severe congestion as a result of an additional 7-10,000 cars; the approaches to Warwick will be spoilt and the views from the castle will be detrimentally affected. The pollution will directly impact on school children when walking to school and when playing sport on the sports fields which are immediately adjacent to these proposed dual carriageways.
2. The projected housing need of 12,300 new homes to be built is much too high. Less than half that number would meet local needs. It is wrong to forecast as far into the future as 2029, and to allocate greenfield land now. It is akin to having no plan at all, allowing uncontrolled growth, just leaving developers to decide what to build when.
3. While the National Planning Policy Framework requires the approval of 'sustainable development' which meets an established housing need, planning applications already made or imminent for much of the land meet neither of these criteria. A realistic forecast of need would mean that the District already has the required five-year supply of sites, balancing housing with employment growth and matching the housing market.
4. Transport: sprawling development is inevitably car-dependent. The transport strategy is car-based, just squeezing more congested traffic on to the existing road network, bridges over the River Avon, and parking. Contrary to transport policies, it would make walking and cycling less attractive, and could not have good public transport. I am very concerned as to the impact on Avon Bridge. This bridge is beautiful and the view from it to the castle, which is enhanced because it is from an old bridge, is priceless and key for Warwick.
5. Air Quality:pollution from car exhausts in many streets in Warwick town centre and some in Leamington is already worse than is legally permitted. The District Council is required to improve air quality, but the plan and its transport strategy would worsen it. Noise and vibration would also be constant, businesses and tourism would be damaged. Worse, the long-term health of residents of these streets would be even more threatened.
6. The quality of the historic environment would directly be damaged by the increase in traffic and by wide new junctions cluttered with traffic lights and signs at beautiful places: in Warwick at Bridge End, over the Castle Bridge, on Castle Hill, and at St John's; and on the approach to Leamington via Europa Way and down the Banbury Road, giving no impression of the beauty of the town.
7. Other Infrastructure: While in theory development would be conditional on it funding schools, and healthcare facilities, the Council's predicted funding and provision is not enough; and there would also be risks to water supply, sewage and drainage. I am particularly concerned that Warwick Hospital cannot cope with increased demand for its services and it is not realistic to expand it sufficiently to cope with eth numbers proposed.
8. There are better alternatives: lower housing numbers to meet local needs, especially for houses which people can afford, instead of encouraging in-migration; gradually releasing land for development as demand grows; giving absolute priority to using brownfield and infill sites near schools, shops and railway stations; building homes close to jobs; and co-operating with other local authorities, instead of competing with them for development.
9. The possible Gipsy and Traveller sites are concentrated in the same area, again because such strong protection is given to the Green Belt and so little to our green land.
10. The land between Warwick, Whitnash and Bishop's Tachbrook and near Gallows Hill is rural and agricultural and present policies respect this. Building on it would merge the built-up areas, making them a single suburban sprawl. The green land is as important as the Green Belt to the north of Leamington and Warwick, and should be safeguarded just as strongly.
I feel strongly that anyone responsible for managing Warwick and anyone who has the residents and traders of Warwick's interests at heart, would see how obvious it is that the Town will be spoilt because it simply cannot cope with the extra transport and pollution, even with the proposed road changes. You cannot realistically avoid the issues that the narrowness of the Avon Bridge, Smith Street, Jury Street and The Butts cause. These are part of the Heritage of Warwick, a unique historic town; the heart of Warwick and its approaches should not be sacrificed.
Please ensure my objections and sincere concerns are passed on to the appropriate and to the highest levels.