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Advice to Alexander Coleman

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Enquiry

From
Alexander Coleman
Date advice given
13 June 2014
Enquiry type
Post

I am writing to register my concern about the design of the new A14 and the inadequate mitigation measures proposed for the village of Hilton. My woll'ies are mainly concerning the scale of the scheme in the vicinity of the village -the road itself will be 3 metres above ground level and the bridges will be 9 metres- only 800m away.

I cannot understand why the design is so much higher than the existing road; the answer given that it's to do with drainage is inadequate- I have never known the current A14 to flood . The latest design is also even closer to the village than the original design- why is this necessary?

The impact on the village goes beyond the visual- the road noise, pollution levels and extra traffic through the village during the construction phase and afterwards will be disproportionately negative unless serious measures are taken ti mitigate them.

The mitigation measures must be guaranteed by including them as part of the tender process and need to include low noise road smfaces, ensuring that the height of the carriageway and bridges is as low as possible, natural banking of adequate height (including generous tree planting) as well as sound barriers for the length of the village. No construction traffic should be allowed through the village and there should be assurances that the borrow pits will be closed after completion.

It is really important that these concerns are taken seriously and that the inevitably negative impact on the village is no greater than absolutely necessary.

Advice given

Dear Mr Coleman Thank you for your letter addressed to Sir Michael Pitt regarding the proposed Cambridge to Huntingdon A14 improvement scheme. It has been passed to me, as the case manager, to respond. This proposal is currently at the pre-application stage. As you are aware, the Highways Agency is currently consulting with local communities and prescribed consultees on their proposal in accordance with the duties which the Planning Act 2008 (as amended) places upon them. I am unsure as to whether you have responded directly to the Highways Agency with your comments, as the Highways Agency will be under a duty to take account of relevant responses. The closing date for this consultation period is 15 June 2014. It is at the developer?s discretion whether to accept any representations after that date. As your letter raises concerns with the consultation being carried out you may also wish to send a copy of your correspondence to the relevant local authority for this area. When the application is submitted to The Planning Inspectorate, local authority consultees will be invited to provide their comments on the adequacy of the developer?s consultation detailing whether the developer complied with their consultation duties in accordance with the Planning Act 2008. Following the submission of the application, a decision will be made within 28 days as to whether the application can be accepted for examination. In deciding whether or not to accept an application the Planning Inspectorate must, amongst other matters, have regard to any adequacy of consultation representation received by it from a local authority consultee. If the developer is deemed to have adequately carried out their pre-application duties and the application is accepted for examination, there will be the opportunity to register your views with The Planning Inspectorate and participate in the examination by completing a relevant representation form. Details about how and when to register will be publicised by the developer. Please note that you are unable to register as an interested party during the current (pre-application) stage of the process for this proposal. Further information about how to participate in the application process can be found in our advice notes. I have enclosed two advice notes which may be of particular interest. If you have any further queries, please don?t hesitate to contact us.