Lorries mounting the pavement in small Essex village
Lorries are travelling through Cressing to avoid roadworks and reach a housing development
Large articulated lorries driving through a small Essex village due to a housing development is making lives “unbearable” amid worries that planning is now like the “Wild West”.
The closure of the B1018 just south of Galleys Corner in Braintree, as part of road improvements associated with a 250-home development, has led to increased traffic and a long diversion route, causing issues, including lorries using the small village of Cressing as a rat run to save time.
According to Cressing residents, the large lorries are not giving way and are even driving on pavements to navigate The Street, the village’s main thoroughfare. It’s left some residents concerned for their safety after lorries were seen driving close to front windows and doors, where older houses open almost into the road.
The B1018 has been fully closed since March 27 between the Millennium Way roundabout and the new roundabout next to the Persimmon development of 250 homes, initially refused by Braintree District Council but later overturned on appeal. The road will provide a connection between the B1018 and Long Green via newly constructed roundabout junctions.
Essex County Council says the closure is required for the safety of the public and the workforce while Persimmon Homes undertakes highway improvement works. A formal diversion route is available via B1018, B1389, A12, A120, B1018 and vice versa. But many vehicles, including lorries, are driving along The Street, which has seen a huge increase in traffic. The B1018 is scheduled to reopen mid-April.
Resident Marilyn Palmer said: “We’ve been here a long while. And we do realise things change, but this is ludicrous.”
“They just build, build, build”, Marilyn’s husband Barry added, “I know it’s everywhere. But it’s getting to the case where it’s unbearable.”
Councillor James Abbott has said planning has become like the “Wild West” with developers often winning speculative development agreements on appeal.
The council had said prior to the planning application being won at appeal in 2020 that the development would occupy a significant proportion of an area of countryside specifically identified as an open countryside buffer area.
However, the inspector said adverse impacts would not significantly outweigh the benefits, and the housing would represent sustainable development.
Councillor Abbott said: “I don’t think the government inspectors have any clue at all or are even bothered that when you get a large number of developments all in a relatively small geographical area, you will get trouble on the roads.”
He added: “Planning has become the Wild West. There is no planning anymore. We’ve got a combination of pressure on this area, the government ramping up targets, and the planning system becoming ever more favourable to developers.
He added: “If you think it’s bad now – with sites and traffic and overdevelopment pressures, what’s in the draft local plan? Plus all the potential appeals, we could be talking about an order of magnitude more – going from sites with hundreds of houses to thousands of houses. We shall all be staring at each other’s tail pipes in a few years’ time and not going anywhere.”
A spokesperson for Essex Highways said: “The official diversion route for the closure on Cressing Road/Braintree Road is via the B1018, B1389, A12, A120, B1018 and vice versa.. This is the most suitable route for all types of traffic which already uses Cressing Road and Braintree Road. The Street is not part of the official diversion route. To view diversion routes and plan ahead for journeys, you can use One.network.”
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been asked to comment.