STUDLEY councillor Justin Kerridge has pledged to fight any increase in traffic through Mappleborough Green and Studley should the Redditch Eastern Gateway get the go-ahead.
In all, some 19 hectares of the land required sit in Stratford district and as part of its core strategy to 2031 the council proposes to make that land available to the new town.
However the Gateway development would result in massive upheaval as the land is cleared to make way for an estimated 100,000 sq metres of factory units and offices, creating up to 2,300 new jobs for the area – and potentially pushing huge amounts of traffic onto the A435.
“This is one of my major issues and I will be putting all my efforts into this because we do not want the traffic situation along the entire A435 to get any worse but to make sure it improves,” he said.
“I have already asked for a meeting with the county council and I know that all the councillors through to Coughton and Alcester will be watching the situation with interest.”
The core strategy emphasises that effective ways of combating the traffic will need to be identified and implemented before any go-ahead is given.
“I do not believe that these are empty words,” said Coun Kerridge, “and I will be approaching this with a completely open mind about what can be and what can’t be done and where the money can be found to do it.
“Redditch has a very good road system, that is certainly worth considering, and there are other measures in Studley which could ensure that HGVs do not speed.
“The key thing is to make the A435 less alluring to HGV drivers and if we can do that then we solve the problem for Mappleborough Green, Studley and Coughton.”
