A controversial plan to expand a village will go ahead despite concerns extra traffic will undo the positive impact of a bypass and cause a return to “accidents of the past”. The scheme, by developer Clarendon Land and Development, will see up to 65 homes built on land off Gaddesby Lane, in Rearsby, after members of Charnwood Borough Council’s plans committee voted to approve it.
The application was passed by the closest of margins – with six councillors voting in favour and five against – after speakers expressed fears the development would have serious consequences for drivers in Melton Road, which has a junction with Gaddesby Lane. But an agent for the developer insisted safety was a priority for the scheme, and that work would be carried out to increase visibility along the stretch of Melton Road in question.
County councillor James Poland, who previously represented the Wreake Valley ward on the borough council, said even if every new home had only one car, residents travelling to and from work could mean an extra 130 journeys taking place in Melton Road every day. He also highlighted a new development “a few hundred metres” down the road, where Redrow Homes is building 256 properties in neighbouring East Goscote. Coun Poland said both schemes together would result in “a vast increase in traffic”. His concerns were echoed by the village’s new borough councillor, Chris O’Neill, who added: “There are going to be tremendous traffic implications there.”
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Anthea Byrne spoke on behalf of Rearsby Parish Council, which had objected to the application. She stressed that Rearsby Bypass had been opened in 2004 as a result of fatalities which happened when people were turning into Melton Road from side roads. She added that the Gaddesby Lane junction was considered to be the most dangerous due to a nearby wall and the curve of the road resulting in “very limited visibility”.
“This has proved to be dangerous, hence the bypass,” she said. “It’s simply not suitable to be a major egress for such a large housing development, and we risk returning to the accidents of the past if allowed.”
But councillor Mark Lowe reminded members they could not use road safety as a reason to refuse the application, and Leicestershire County Council’s highways team had no objections to the development.
Speaking on behalf of the developer, Liberty Stones, of Fisher German property consultants, told the planning committee they recognised residents had concerns about the development. “That’s normal and natural for all new residential proposals,” she said. “Delivery of safe access to the site is a priority.”
She added that improvements were planned for the junction that had already been approved by the highways team, and would increase visibility for vehicles exiting Gaddesby Lane by “pushing” the junction further out into Melton Road.
Before the vote, Councillor Geoff Lawrence gave a cautionary tale, pointing out that while a bus service currently connected the development to Melton Mowbray and Leicester, if the route was ever cancelled residents would struggle if they did not own a car. He highlighted an application in Sileby which was approved on appeal last year, with the bus service running near the site that provided a vital link to Leicester for village residents being severely curtailed two months later, leaving people without an easy route to the city.
Planning officers reminded the committee that planning rules meant they had to consider the application as it currently stood, rather than members basing their decision on what might happen in the future.
The council had received 37 objections to the development, with concerns raised by local people including that countryside would be lost. The plans show a number of green areas, including “a green space in the heart of the development”, and a children’s play area is also included in the proposals.
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