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downsmail.co.uk Road rage over developer input
KENT County Council’s transport assessments for house building in Maidstone are based on statistics provided by the developers them- selves. This startling factwas unearthed
by the borough’s Lib Dems, while fighting proposals for a further 19,600 homes in Maidstone bor- ough between 2011 and 2031. In the past, KCC carried out
vehicle counts on roads across the county – the Kent Traffic Counts programme – but this was scrapped in 2011. Since then, the county has relied
on figures commissioned by house builders themselves – in one exam- ple Land Securities commissioned
its own transport survey in support of its unsuccessful plan to rede- velop Newnham Court. Cllr Ian Chittenden said: “These companies could save on the cost of road improvements – such as wider roads and roundabouts – by sup- plying lower vehicle numbers, which clearly makes this a conflict of interest. “If, after the building takes place,
the numbers turn out to be too low, there will be increased congestion, creating a cost which will have to be met by the taxpayer.” In March, KCC’s cabinet member
for transport and highways Cllr David Brazier told Cllr Chittenden that KCC was able to commission
its own independent transport con- sultants to check information pro- vided, but this was increasingly limited due to cash cutbacks. Cllr Chittenden said: “We have
raised serious questions about traf- fic figures reported by developers for a 220-home scheme in Boughton Lane. While KCC ques- tioned the validity of the develop- ers’ report, it does not have the resources to make a proper judg- ment.” Cllr Chittenden said he would
like to see the Kent Traffic Counts programme reinstated. “We are now facing the possibil-
ity of having to provide 19,600 new homes in Maidstone – with little
Bequest buys lunch for support group friends
TEN members of the Maidstone Prostate Cancer Support Group enjoyed lunch at Fredericks Bistro, paid for by their late friend PeterWard who died in December after a long and brave fight against the disease. Peter left £500 in his will for his friends at the group who
had given him so much support and comfort, so they could have a meal on him. Before the meal the group held a minute’s silence while they reflected on his life. The group members wish to thank all the staff and doc-
tors at Maidstone Hospital for the unstinting support they gave Peter.
Business Focus
money for road improvements to relieve congestion and pollution.” Cllr Brazier said: “KCC can ask
our independent traffic consultants to check developers’ datasets. This requires financial resources from KCC, so this practice is not fol- lowed for all situations. “Otherwise, KCC has the expert-
ise and local traffic knowledge to sense check the datasets and assumptions. “The data collection report should show whether the data has been collected by a competent sur- vey company, when the data was collected, and what the weather and traffic (incidents) conditions were at that time.”
Solar array
A PROPOSAL has been lodged to install a 120kw ground mounted solar array in Grigg Lane, Head- corn. The structurewould occupy 80m
by 26m of grazing land at Ringles
Nursery.At its nearest, itwould be 305m from Gruff Lane to the north and 409m from Smarden Road to the south. Maidstone Council will deter- mine the planning application.
downsmail.co.uk
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