Guildford ‘Strategic Sites’ Riddle After Whitehall Abandons Plans to Widen A3

Published on: 21 Jun, 2020
Updated on: 21 Jun, 2020

The stretch of the A3 that is no longer part of the government’s road investment plan.

A government review on road-building has raised questions about the development of two “strategic sites” in Guildford’s Local Plan, say campaigners.

The review “Road Investment Strategy 2 – April 2020 – March 2025”, indicates that plans to widen the A3 through Guildford, where it is reduced to two lanes each way, will not be getting any new investment in the foreseeable future.

During the hotly contested debate on the Local Plan before its controversial adoption just two weeks before the borough council election in May last year (2019), Paul Spooner, then the Conservative council leader, went on record to assure residents that housing development would not proceed without the necessary local infrastructure.

He told The Guildford Dragon NEWS: “Guildford will not have all these new houses, even though they are needed, without having the infrastructure.”

Karen Stevens

Karen Stevens, Organiser of the Save Hog’s Back campaign and chairman of the Local Plan Sub-committee at Compton Parish Council, has written to GBC councillors to remind them: “Guildford’s Local Plan was based largely on the premise that the widening scheme would go ahead and it is imperative that Guildford Borough Council now reviews and modifies its plans as promised.”

Highways England (HE), she said, voiced concerns over the scale of development proposed in the Local Plan and in a response to the “Proposed Submission Local Plan”, raised objections to the strategic sites for thousands of new homes at Blackwell Farm and Gosden Hill.

She points out: “The [Plan’s] Statement of Common Ground was clear that if the widening did not come forward or was significantly delayed, the Local Plan may need to be reviewed. It states, ‘The delivery of planned development in the later stages of the plan period is dependent on delivery of an improvement to the A3 through Guildford.

“‘It is understood that if it is not possible for Highways England to demonstrate a positive business case for an improvement to the A3 through Guildford, it may be necessary for Guildford Borough Council to consider a review of the Local Plan including its site allocations and infrastructure schedule.'”

Ms Stevens sent copies of her letter to all councillors but received a response from only one, Bob McShee (R4GV, Worplesdon). But today (June 18) GBC Council leader Caroline Reeves said: “The Government are no longer advancing the development of the scheme, which is very disappointing. This scheme was included in the government’s previous Road Investment Strategy and subject to debate at the Examination and addressed in the Inspector’s report.

Cllr Caroline Reeves

“While the Plan was prepared on the assumption that the scheme would be delivered, the Plan anticipates the possibilities of delay, reduction in scope or the cancellation of the scheme.

“The council has addressed this eventuality explicitly in Local Plan Policy ID2 (2). This involves collaborative working with Surrey County Council and Highways England, reviewing its transport evidence base to consider impacts of approved development and Local Plan growth on the safe operation and the performance of the Local Road Networks and Strategic Road Network.

“This review will determine whether the proposed transport measures or additional transport measures can mitigate the cumulative impacts of development traffic on the A3.”

Letter from Karen Stevens to all GBC councillors in full:

Dear Councillor,

Impact of Government’s Road Investment Strategy and the need to review Guildford’s Local Plan

Following publication in March of the Road Investment Strategy 2 – April 2020 – March 2025, it appears that the A3 widening through Guildford will not be getting any new investment in the foreseeable future. The Local Plan was based largely on the premise that the widening scheme would go ahead and it is imperative that Guildford Borough Council now reviews and modifies its plans as promised.

As you are aware, Highways England (HE) must ensure that transport movements on the strategic network are not detrimentally affected by the Local Plan, and it voiced concerns over the scale of development proposed in the draft Local Plan. As an example, in HE’s 2016 response to the Proposed Submission Local Plan, it raised objections to the strategic sites at Blackwell Farm and Gosden Hill.

Following HE’s initial objections, the Council worked with HE to produce a Statement of Common Ground so that the strategic sites could be put forward, but this was subject to the A3 widening taking place. The Statement of Common Ground was clear that if the widening did not come forward or was significantly delayed, the Local Plan may need to be reviewed. It states:

“The delivery of planned development in the later stages of the plan period is dependent on delivery of an improvement to the A3 through Guildford. It is understood that if it is not possible for Highways England to demonstrate a positive business case for an improvement to the A3 through Guildford, it may be necessary for Guildford Borough Council to consider a review of the Local Plan including its site allocations and infrastructure schedule.”

As the Government’s Road Investment Strategy clearly does not include the A3 widening, this should now trigger a review of the Local Plan. This review should not come as a surprise to developers as these issues were all raised at the Examination in Public in July 2018. They were also cited in the High Court as the reason why GBC required a 40% buffer to its objectively assessed housing need figure. The Council is, therefore, fully entitled to carry out this review without fear of reprisals.

The review should introduce policies into the Local Plan that ensure:

1. Sites with a significant impact on the strategic road network are not brought forward for planning permission until infrastructure is in place to support them.
2. Sites are not commenced if there is the possibility that the entire site cannot be built. This will ensure that land is used efficiently and, in the case of Blackwell Farm, that land which forms the setting to the Surrey Hills AONB is not permanently scarred in order to provide the 150 homes which might potentially be built in the early stages of the Plan. The ‘exceptional circumstances’ that were put forward by GBC to justify taking the strategic sites out of the green belt would not apply if these sites only comprised a fraction of their intended allocation.

Ideally, we would ask that the Council removes Blackwell Farm from the Local Plan. The Council has repeatedly stated that it does not wish to build unnecessarily on open farmland in the green belt and it now has the opportunity to review the Local Plan and to remove at least two green-belt strategic sites on legitimate transport grounds, whilst still meeting the borough’s objectively assessed housing need. 

Removing two strategic sites would clearly be more cost-efficient, more ‘land’ efficient and cause less harm to the environment than simply reducing the volume of housing across a number of smaller sites.

Best regards,

Karen Stevens

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