It could be chaos this Christmas… ring-a ding-ding its Cala calling.

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The townsfolk of Cranleigh – (apologies to villagers – but over there in the East can hardly be called a village any longer – can it?) – are predicting untold traffic misery. Developers Cala Homes aided and abetted by everyone’s bete noir, Surrey County Council highway “experts,”have devised  a cunning plan that could bring traffic to a standstill in the Town’s High Street.

Listen to this but it  could drive you mad!

We would have featured a picture here of Surrey County Councillor Alan Young directing the traffic in Amlets Lane, Cranleigh but the Surrey Advertiser hasn’t taken one yet…? so … until it does  we have pictured some golden balls… well it is nearly Christmas…!Screen Shot 2016-12-09 at 11.32.23.png

We hear from the Cranleigh Society  that our so called highway “experts” have devised  a route plan for  Cala Homes construction traffic which, is predicted  to cause untold misery for the residents of Cranleigh…

By pushing it through Cranleigh High Street!

Didn’t Cranleigh’s  Borough Councillors want more footfall in the High Street – well be careful  of what you wish for,  because everyone could soon be abandoning their cars and walking when all the proposed development gets underway!

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The access route from Guildford to Amlets Lane involves the most narrow part of Amlets Lane just –  4.8m wide and where two HGVs cannot pass. Hauling heavy and bulky construction equipment down this  lane will prove hazardous for motorists. 

Liz Townsend, Chair of the Cranleigh Society, has suggested to  Cala Homes that it  operates  a single lorry system , using a manned radio system  at the Cranleigh School end of Amlets with a  site gatekeeper allowing only one heavily laden lorry at a time to arrive/leave the site.  Although requiring more planning, it would remove the  need  to use the High Street. 

At  present it is planned for lorries to  leave exit the site  via Barhatch Lane/Ewhurst Road en route to the “already chaotic Cranleigh High Street.”  Particularly so  during “school run” times – providing a recipe for gridlock!

More so, as several other  developments including Crest Nicholson/  Horsham Road (149) and Berkeley Homes/Knowle Lane ( 425 dwellings) will begin shortly. The locals  have been banging on to “Your Waverley” about  their concerns  for years but now the nightmare they predicted  is about to  become  reality!   Even more  developments are in the pipeline, all of which  want  to start  building  before Cala’s   project is completed. So, matters can only worsen.

Says The   Civic Society: ” Were  all these other projects  taken into account when Cala dictated the departure route for its  development?”

Oh! don’t be a silly Lizzie – you know they didn’t – don’t you remember – Cala Homes thought everything was coming and going either by train or bike … didn’t they?

There are five schools directly affected by the present route plan –   Park Mead School (many children access the school via the Ewhurst Road), St Cuthbert Mayne RC School (where parents park  on both sides of Ewhurst Road for drop-off and collection, thus effectively narrowing the road), St. Joseph’s School, Cranleigh Senior School and Cranleigh Prep School are all affected.

Allowing construction traffic to operate between 16.00 and 17.00 will have implications for them all.

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 WW says: Ask County Councillor Young – he’s getting all Cranleigh’s traffic problems solved – he’s  just had kerbs installed alongside Cranleigh Common – where a follower tells us, “villagers have parked quite happily for years to watch the cricket and school children have been dropped off!”

Perhaps if Cranleigh’s  Lizzie…  nabs herself  that Borough council seat in the forthcoming election she can stand up and tell planning chief Liz The Biz -the effect decisions made at Waverley Towers are having on Cranleigh? Sadly – may be too late!

Says Liz Townsend: “The use of the High Street, and the disruption that it will cause, is unnecessary and illustrates the folly of permitting uncontrolled development in Cranleigh due to a lack of sound judgement from statutory agencies.We assume that the Highways Department is responsible for efforts to maintain a reasonable traffic flow throughout its area. The present plan will certainly fail on that score. The Cranleigh Society proposal (above) entails more effort but should provide a happier and safer outcome for the residents of Cranleigh.

You can contact CCS at info@cranleighsociety.org  or read more on: [http://www.cranleighsociety.org/2016/12/08/amlets-residents-liaison-group/

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