Officers attending a meeting at Worcestershire County Hall, Monday 13th September, assured me that with regards to the discussions regarding Newtown Road, we are 'at a very early stage'. They wanted to reassure traders and residents alike that no changes will be made to the road without proper consultations.
As part of this process there will be a meeting on 20th September at 5.45pm at the Salvation Army Hall on Newtown Road. This meeting is open to traders on the road and local District Councillors with an interest and will be attended by officers from Worcestershire County Council as part of their fact finding exercise.
As part of the discussions officers will be keen to ask traders about their views on the concepts outlined so far for proposed changes for Newtown Road, as well as projections for traffic increases along the road as the North Site development continues. They pointed out in our meeting today that out of a proposed 400 new homes about 100 have so far been occupied, so the impact of any changes in traffic on Newtown road have not yet been fully felt. They were also very conscious of the need to ' keep a lot of on-road parking' and the impact of that for traders.
The officers were very mindful of the 4 schools in the vicinity and as a result of projections made by WSP Transportation Consultants they had been looking at three possible crossing points along Newtown Road - at the junction with Somers Park Road, at St Joseph's Primary School and opposite the North Hill Court car park. I highlighted traders extreme concerns at losing on-road parking spaces because of any such developments on the road.
Officers outlined the facts behind the current free parking at North Hill Court made possible as the result of contribution made by the developer, Persimmon Homes, to Malvern Hills District Council enabling this car park to be free to users indefinitely moving forward.
Officers wished to stress that they were keen to engage in a constructive dialogue with traders, to fully understand their concerns and to try to see what solutions, if any, might meet the needs of all parties.
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