Object

Representation ID: 5728

Received: 07/09/2021

Respondent: Odell Parish Council

In the further detailed development of the 2040 Plan Odell Parish Council has a strong preference for option 2c and would encourage the Borough to focus on this option or 2a. Each of these take maximum advantage of the A421 dual carriageway and its connection to the M1 as a prime transport route to and from Bedford on the south west/north east axis, with the new / improved stations on the East West Rail route being complementary to both these options.
The Parish Council strongly disagrees with any inclusion in the 2040 Plan of the new garden village sites at Twinwoods or Colworth, which are unsustainable because of the already congested and overloaded road network north of Bedford.
The A6 coming from North Bedfordshire into Bedford is already completely overloaded in the morning peak with traffic queuing back at least 0.5 miles from the Sainsbury Roundabout along Paula Radcliffe Way and also extensively along Great Ouse Way. The latest proposals regarding road improvements/ traffic lights to address this issue are wholly inadequate and far more radical solutions need to be considered, including a potential park and ride facility with a dedicated lane for the shuttle buses that would be required. The bus station and rail station need to be adjacent to each other to provide an integrated transport solution, facilitating optimum use of a Park and ride/shuttle bus facility.
We note with considerable concern the proposal to accommodate up to 500 new homes in Sharnbrook, particularly relative to the already existing significant traffic constraints within the infrastructure of that village. The arterial roads from Sharnbrook, passing through Odell and Harrold between the A6 and the A428 have existing congestion problems, particularly in Harrold where historical road widths and extensive roadside parking effectively creates a single lane roadway. Further traffic is likely to be generated from the 2040 plan which will exacerbate an already unacceptable and challenging situation. With the growing volumes of traffic likely to emerge from the plan and years beyond, a more radical solution needs to be sought.