CAMPAIGNERS are calling on a developer building 1,300 properties in Bromsgrove district to find a better highways solution so people can get in and out to their homes with minimal congestion.
Residents say Taylor Wimpey’s plans for a spine road – agreed with the Planning Inspectorate as part of the Perryfields application – would have been more or less a direct route from the Kidderminster Road to the Stourbridge Road, effectively running parallel to the M5.
But they said when the reserved matters application was submitted that road had now been altered ‘with more bends being put in so more housing can be accommodated along the route’.
This, they feel, would make it less effective and less appealing to drivers and would lead to motorists using other areas as a rat run to avoid the heavy residential areas.
Graham Dallas, one of the campaigners, said: “One of the main areas that needs to be avoided is the town centre, including the Parkside and The Strand junctions.
“The only other solution would be to widen the road there to enable more traffic to flow quickly through but that would not be possible as the land on the one side is owned by the businesses and very costly compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) would need to be made to fund the space for the road.
“The new plans will also have a detrimental effect on those living in Sidemoor, in roads like Broad Street, as they too would be clogged up with even more traffic as drivers sought to find alternative routes.”
‘All we want is original spine road reinstated’
The campaigners say all they want is the original plan for the spine road to be reinstated and submitted with the application.
Sue Harris, from PDAG, said: “We need two roads – a spine road, similar to Perryfields Road and a new development road which will take traffic to and from the new housing estates.
“Anything short of that will see the town centre being turned into numerous rat runs.”
Their concerns have also been echoed by the Bromsgrove Society which, in its comments, said ‘four additional right angle bends increased the likelihood of vehicles parked along the highway’ and deter drivers from using the spine road.
A Bromsgrove District Council spokesperson said the authority was assessing the submitted application for Perryfields and it would be determined by members of the planning committee at a future meeting.
“This relates to a Reserved Matters Application (detailed application) relating to Phase 1 for 149 residential units on land abutting Stourbridge Road/Perryfields Road.
“The Reserved Matters application seeks consent in line with condition one on the approved outline planning application for detailed matters of appearance, landscaping, layout, and scale.”
People can click here to see the plans and comments and have their say.
A spokesperson for Taylor Wimpey said: “Taylor Wimpey North Midlands has worked extensively with Worcestershire County Council to agree the spine road design for the Perryfields development.
“As this is a residential scheme, it is designed to 20mph speed limits for the safety of all highway users with a consistent width of 6.1 metres.
“Both design features are in line with the appeal decision, its supporting documents and reports and the highway standards for WCC.
“The parameter plan for access and movement was approved as part of the outline planning consent, and stated that the exact route of the spine road is to be agreed, which is still the case. Taylor Wimpey is fully committed to creating a road format that complies with the standards set out by Worcestershire County Council and inline with the planning permission we received.
“Additionally, we have recently responded to the case officer following objection of the spine road within phase 1 from the Bromsgrove Society and we continue to work closely with Worcestershire County Council, Bromsgrove District Council and other stakeholders to ensure we deliver in accordance with their requirements.”
Strategic Transport Assessment calls
LABOUR councillor Harrison Rone Clarke has re-raised the question about what has happened to the Strategic Transport Assessment (STA) was.
He and fellow councillor Luke Mallett were promised the research and document in April 2021 during a Bromsgrove District Council meeting when a motion was put forward calling for a Western Relief Road. Those calls were accompanied by a 5,000-name petition from the Perryfields Development Action Group (PDAG).
They were promised the STA would be completed by the summer of 2022 but now, 22 months on from the original meeting, there is still no sign of it.
Coun Rone-Clarke added: “It feels like the STA and the issues surrounding it have been kicked into the long grass and we’ve been lied to.”
But Bromsgrove District Council leader Coun Karen May said the STA was an ongoing piece of work and the authority was reliant on Worcestershire County Council.
With regard to it in the context of Perryfields, she added an agreement was already in place whereby a transport assessment would have to be carried out when the development was 50 per cent completed to ensure the traffic was flowing as it should.
Changes could then be implemented if that was not the case.
