NAG Press Release February 23rd 2007

Proposed Chelmer Valley Crossing Abandoned & Chelmsford LDF

Chelmsford NAG is pleased by Chelmsford Borough Council's recommendation to abandon any plans for a Chelmer Valley Road. We are sure that this is the sensible decision both now and for the future.

This announcement, though welcome, still leaves us with great concerns about where the thousands of homes forced on Chelmsford by National Government policy will be located.

NAG is most unhappy about plans to swamp North Springfield with several thousand more homes on Greenfield sites. White Hart Lane, already hugely congested during term-time rush hours, will be brought to a standstill by traffic flows from the potential ten-fold expansion of Beaulieu Park.

NAG believes that the developer-proposed White Heart Lane relief road would, in typical developer fashion, be constructed too late to prevent White Heart Lane being bought to a standstill by the development. Our suggestion to focus development north of Boreham, combined with a NE Bypass, would render such a relief road unnecessary, saving millions of pounds that could go towards school or public transport schemes.

NAG will continue to work for sensible solutions to Chelmsford's development independently of all party-politics. Our research shows that there are two crucial requirements for sensible solutions - a thoughtful use of vast acres of spoilt land north of Boreham ("the Airfield") and the careful building of the North East by-pass on Route D to minimise green damage. We also believe that the Council is misleading the public by claiming that development north of Boreham is ruled out by Government policy: this is not the case.


Peter Loose

Chairman Chelmsford NAG

23/02/07

For more information:
peterwloose@compuserve.com

Tel: 01245 362 295

“Chelmers”, Lt Waltham. CM3 3LX