Planning Department Wyre Council Civic Centre Breck Road Poulton-le-Fylde Lancs FY6 7PU Alf Clempson County Councillor for Poulton-le-Fylde Phone: 07876844281 Email: [email protected] Date: 6th Aug 2014 Reference: Outline application for a residential development of up to 165 dwellings with access applied for off Lambs Road and Raikes Road. Planning Application Reference: 14/00553/OULMAJ Dear Sir/Madam, As the County Councillor for Poulton-le-Fylde, I am writing in response to the above Planning Application. Although this application is outside the Division for which I am responsible, I feel that the effect of this application, in relation to highways, will have a severe impact on Poulton-le-Fylde. I would therefore like to make the following comments with regard to highways issues. Poulton is an extremely busy town and boasts the only railway station in Wyre. This brings a great deal of traffic into a very small area. Additionally, as the town has outstanding schools, a large amount of traffic is brought into the area. There is also an industrial estate which brings many HGVs into the town. Many of these vehicles use the town as a shortcut and have no real reason to travel on minor roads, which were never designed to cope with either the weight, or the volume of traffic they now cater for. In turn, these vehicles have damaged the road surface in the past and I fear will cause roads to collapse and damage to buildings. Poulton also has high employment, although many residents travel to work using vehicles. The points I have just mentioned, coupled with recent and future retail investment, means that the town will have many challenges in relation to highways over the next few years. I am determined to meet these challenges and ensure that the town continues to prosper. A good, effective and well maintained road network is essential. Poulton serves the area surrounding it, for example residents from: Thornton, Cleveleys, Over Wyre, Blackpool North, Normoss, Singleton and further afield. They make the most of the town's schools, railway station, medical and dental surgeries, an expanding choice of retail outlets, a successful Monday Market, leisure facilities and a wide choice of eateries and hostelries. For this reason an extremely high number of additional car journeys are generated, which in turn puts pressure on the town's already stretched highway network. This also adds to parking problems, causes congestion and access issues when vehicles park on residential streets. It would be short sighted at best, even negligent, not to take into account the points I have highlighted above when considering any major development in the area. Although this application is for 165 homes, the developer has made no secret of the fact that other applications are likely to follow in the immediate area. I do understand that the Planning Authority must look at each application individually. However, it is extremely important for the Highway Authority to be made aware of bigger picture and of all future developments, in order to assess the overall effect it would have on the network. I do not believe the Transport Assessment (TA) is a true reflection of the level of trips which will be generated. I would argue that 50 two way peak hour trips on a weekday, on both the A585 Amounderness Way/B5412 Victoria Road roundabout and the A585 Skippool Road roundabout is under-estimated. I believe that the Highways Agency have to look very closely at these figures and the severe effect any additional traffic will have on these already busy junctions. I would also argue that that the TA does not take into account the obvious effect this development would have on Poulton. I firmly believe that the Highways Agency and the Highway Authority (LCC) must not look at this application in isolation. Indeed, they must take into account all proposed and future major development in the Thornton, Poulton and Fleetwood areas. I believe that the area of Poulton and Thornton has unique challenges in relation to traffic. The A585 and A586 are already extremely busy through roads which serve the Fylde coast and are at peak times over capacity now. I urge all responsible authorities to take the following factors on-board when looking at current and future developments including: the amount of traffic generated by business, day trippers, long term holiday makers and workers in the tourism industry. This is in addition to the normal high volume of traffic generated by residents on a daily basis. Another relevant fact is that to avoid the A585 and A586 when they are at capacity many motorists use the centres and residential roads in both Thornton and Poulton as shortcuts in order to avoid congestion. This puts extra pressure on many residential roads and in turn increases the risk to pedestrians and all road users in these areas and turns many roads especially in Poulton into 'ratruns'. This situation also poses an added risk to school children due to the many schools in the area. As the County's representative in Poulton-le-Fylde, future development in the area concerns me greatly. Poulton and Thornton are aspirational places to live, but must be sustainable with regard to the highway network being able to cope. I am convinced that the roads and towns I have mentioned at peak times are at full capacity now and it would be irresponsible to encourage any further major development without major improvements to the highways network. I believe part of this improvement must be in the form of a direct link to the M55. In the absence of this link and improvements to residential roads in the area, I feel I would not be working effectively for the community I serve if I did not put the safety of residents first and strongly object to this development on the grounds I have mentioned. Could I respectfully ask that you please take my concerns into account when making your decision. Yours sincerely, A Clempson Alf Clempson County Councillor for Poulton-le-Fylde
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