A developer is hoping people will be allowed to live in new houses in Lichfield before highways improvements required as part of the planning approval are carried out.
Redrow Homes say the change is needed to “enable the occupation of 50 dwellings” while other issues are resolved at the Watery Lane site.
The original planning agreement said that development should not start until highway improvements at the southern section of the road had been completed, including the installation of a signal-controlled junction underneath the railway bridge.
It also said that none of the buildings should be occupied until enhancements to the Watery Lane and Eastern Avenue junction were completed.
But the developer says delays with a section 278 agreement – which allows developers to enter into a legal agreement with council to make highway alterations and improvements – means the planning conditions need to be varied.
A statement submitted to Lichfield District Council said:
“The proposed development of 50 dwellings will generate 26 two-way trips during the peak periods. This equates to less than one additional vehicle every two minutes in this location.
“While the bridge is narrow, forward visibility through the bridge stands at around 85 to 90 metres.
“Speed surveys completed further north along Watery Lane show average speeds to be around 30mph. Forward visibility in this location is therefore considered suitable for vehicles to see each other and give-way accordingly.”
The study from the developers also added that the current Eastern Avenue junction would “operate well within acceptable thresholds during peak hours” if the traffic from 50 additional homes was added to existing vehicles using the route.
Longer term plans to make improvements at the railway bridge will see the temporary closure of Watery Lane. The developer added:
“During the period of implementing the highway improvement works at the railway bridge, Watery Lane is likely to be closed to through traffic for approximately six months.
“It is likely that by this time, Redrow Homes will have constructed the spine road between Watery Lane and Netherstowe Lane meaning traffic could travel along the northern extent of Watery Lane or to Netherstowe Lane via the new spine road.
“As a worst case, all traffic could travel north along Watery Lane and then distribute at the Wood End Lane junction seeking access to Lichfield either via the A515, Netherstowe Lane or via Fradley Park.
“As the development proposals will only result in 26 additional vehicles in the peak period, additional movements along Watery Lane and across the wider network will not be significant and not result in a severe impact at any location.
“The impact of the road closure will, in any event, be temporary and traffic patterns will revert back once the improvements are implemented.
“It is also unlikely the impact on the northern extent Watery Lane will be any greater than that experienced once the proposed development is fully occupied as some routing north to access the A515 is likely to be experienced as part of natural traffic distribution.”
Full details can be seen on Lichfield District Council’s planning website.
People who want money hope they will be allowed to do something they’ve been told they can’t do so they can get money a bit sooner and don’t care about problems this may cause for others.
This project should have been refused at the initial point of the planning process and now the builders are laughing in our faces. As someone who has used Watery Lane a lot in the past how anyone can say the junction at Eastern Avenue will cope with the extra traffic . Since the builders have jumped the gun let them stew in in their decision to start building prematurely
In addition has anyone been up Watery Lane recently and seen the total mess and abuse of this beautiful country area north of Lichfield
Do the builders not envision a couple having a car each which adds 100 cars to the road?
Are the improvements going to help the flooding there too ?
Council should hold the money required as a bond from the builders. Then there won’t be back tracking on this and that with regards the required improvements.
Lichfield Council opposed this development but it was overturned by Gove for the government. His assertion was that more homes was a priority over all other considerations.
It is obvious that Watery Lane is not suitable for such a development. The builders opinions about the railway bridge are laughable. They just want to build the houses and disappear. The consequences will just add to the existing infrastructure problems in that area.
Watery Lane is a dangerous ‘rat run’.
This reminds me of the saga at Walton on Trent not very far away ? Houses were given planning permission on the former power station land provided the developer paid for a new bridge to replace a single span bridge over the river Trent at Walton ! Well 10 years later the houses have been built but there’s still NO sign of the replacement bridge only an access road to nowhere ? So let’s see if the alterations ate done in Watery Lane before ALL the houses are built ? Do you have belief in our Council cos I don’t? SAD
As usual, developers ‘riding roughshod’ over all and sundry.
I wish Alva’s traffic estimates were true I think the site will have almost 500 dwellings so 1000 vehicles is nearer the mark- a massive problem awaits
Once again the council have no back bone. The developers should have not been able to start anything until advised as set out in the planning permission. Its an absolute joke.
Both LDC & SCC have been advised of the real potential of flooding in this location, I don’t understand given these grave concerns how planning has been consented. Similar to the flooding issues being experienced by residents of nearby Streethay development a word of warning around home insurance and flooding “do your homework” as it can be very costly to put right and no support from developers
“While the bridge is narrow, forward visibility through the bridge stands at around 85 to 90 metres.” This is nonsense. Just look at the picture: you can’t see the road more than 10 metres past the bridge.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣lol
26 cars is a serious underestimate. Most homes have 2 or more vehicles. There will also be home deliveries (new home = new furniture), food deliveries (grocery and things like deliveroo), school runs, trips for essentials that have run out, kids events, gym, social events, etc. This is an isolated development without a safe option to walk to and from the City. I agree that it should never have been approved but then to push for early occupancy is unbelievable arrogance from the developer, and shows a disregard towards their own customers’ safety and wellbeing, let alone that of the local community who use, or rely on, that road for their own essential needs.
Safety first please.
The bridge and flooding are one issue but the bigger one is that this is a country LANE and unsuitable for the amount of traffic using it now, let alone when 1000 additional cars have to use it. And its not a rat run; its a vital route in and out of Lichfield (considering all the other road closures) and access to much-used and loved local businesses. An adequate road should have been built before any development took place, let alone measly traffic lights at the bridge.
Assuming these are family homes the builders haven’t considered the school run at all when working out their numbers for peak travel times.
This is just the Redrow homes development, what about when the rest are built? I can’t remember the exact figure but isn’t it around 2,500? I went to one of the meetings for this and we were told that there would be traffic lights for the Watery Lane bridge then more lights to access Eastern Avenue! We were told the other access would be Netherstow Lane. The impact on this stretch of road towards Trent Valley will be huge but politicians and developers don’t care, what’s really needed is affordable housing but I’m not sure how many they’re building. Sadly Lichfield and it’s beautiful surrounding countryside has been lost.
Here we go again, let’s carry on as the council won’t stop us building all these new houses. They haven’t got the nerve to stand up to us, we are entitled developers ! Should cancel the plan and give it to another more considerate developer. Just how many times has the St. John St railway bridge been hit in the past ? What’s the chances of either the builders or suppliers hitting the Water Lane bridge!!
This is another example of developers trying to move the goalposts once they’ve got permissions in place. This request should be turned down on principal alone. They knew what the plans were – now just chancing their luck.
@Philip; think you will find it wasn’t Gove but Sajid Javid that overruled; probably never viewed the site in person. For once I think the Council did put up a fight but then quickly caved as always. Like many things in this area totally unsuitable and no consideration of infrastructure. Just adds to the continued ruination of Lichfield.
Well with the case of netherstowe Lane are they taking into account it is a national cycle route which is only wide enough for one car at the most as the Lane has become a rat run for cyclists to us with the amount of cars speeding through there. CYCLISTS SAFETY MUST COME FIRST.
Forwardvisibility?? One is blind approaching the bridge from either direction especially westwards towards Eastern Ave
Of course Redrow will do what it likes in this situation, blatant disregard of planning consent but no deterent in place. The fines for not complying to planning will be considerably less than doing the work required. Get the people into the new square boxes then clear off with the profits. Come on Lichfield dig your heels in and and enforce the planning regulations.
As ‘considerate builders’ you would think that they could provide parking spaces off Watery Lane for their site vehicles. Chaos along there at the moment with vans and cars parked randomly on the verges, Seven Trent effluent lorries, hard-core delivery lorries, Fradley traffic due to the A38 closure and Craft Centre visitors. The north of Lichfield is rapidly becoming a no-go area for local residents.
With all the weeks of recent Watery Lane closures, surely someone would have thought it would have been an ideal time to make the improvements through the bridge. Now we are told in this article that the road will once again “be closed to through traffic for approximately six months” This seems to be the case for most roadworks in the Lichfield area. Why can’t someone sit down and plan all the work to happen during the same shutdown period.
Has anyone tried to accsess Netherstowe Lane from Eastern Avenue. There are times when it is extremely difficult beacause of current hoseholders parking their cars on both sides of Netherstowe lane. Cars and vans are having to play dodgems or they are forced to halt to let cars coming down towards Eastern Avenue.
Much of the extra traffic from the newbuild properties will be directed down Netherstowe Lane causing gridlock at peak times.
Why is anyone surprised that neither the council, the developer, the government minister/department have any consideration for any of the people affected by this shambles? They don’t care about us “little” people and experience tells us that they never have.
How many people who “approve” of these developments actuality live in this area? or even bother to actually observe what really goes on here? Don’t they even consider that our doctors surgeries are already over-run? When you have to wait up to a month for an appointment and there’s even a waiting list for a blood test? Plus has anyone been stuck on Trent Valley Rd for 20mins not moving due to traffic? And as for dentists- there aren’t many NHS ones left anyway! I also feel that if an area is prone to flooding – the developers should be made responsible! Since they ignored any warnings! They only care about money!