Oswestry homes plan continues to go roundabout in circles

Landowner, J Ross Developments submitted an application to built on 24 hectares of land between the Oswestry bypass and Shrewsbury Road to Shropshire Council almost a year ago.

But concerns about the amount of traffic that the new homes will add to traffic on the the A5 and A483, particularly the busy Mile End and Whittington roundabouts, has led Highways England to ask several times for the application to be put on hold.

Over recent weeks the developer's transport consultant has submitted proposals to mitigate the impact on the roundabouts.

In a letter to Shropshire Council, Highways England manager Patrick Thomas says: "This information has been reviewed and progress has been made with regard to the proposed site access roundabout, the A5 Whittington roundabout and the A5 Mile End roundabout.

"The mitigation scheme at the Whittington Roundabout is considered acceptable and, while the proposed scheme at Mile End does not fully mitigate the impact of the proposed development, the impact is not considered to be severe and is considered to be acceptable."

Highways England's formal recommendation is to recommend permission not be granted for three months to allow a road safety audit to be undertaken to support the proposed highway improvement works and comply with procedure.

The proposed development is set around an open green with pedestrian and vehicle links to the town centre and to the nearby leisure centre and industrial estate.

There are also plans to build a pedestrian bridge over the A5/A483 to connect with a proposed new Mile End business park on the other side of the bypass.

The land is part of the proposed sustainable urban development that sits within Shropshire Council's Samdev, the blueprint for future housebuilding in the county.

"Both housing and employment growth is vital to maintaining and developing Oswestry's position regionally," the J Ross Developments design statement says.