Object

Representation ID: 16035

Received: 10/10/2021

Respondent: David Harris

I am contacting you to object to the proposed housing development on Mob Lane / Coronation Road in Shelfield - Walsall.

The proposed development will not only destroy vital areas of green land but will also put a huge strain on existing services and infrastructure. The addition of up to 763 new houses in this area will completely destroy the village character of Shelfield effectively turning it in to small town but without the necessary amenities that an expansion of this scale would require.

The local road infrastructure is completely unsuitable for a development of the size proposed:

Access from Vicarage Road / Fordbrook Lane is already difficult due to the high volume of traffic that uses this route. This is even more pronounced during rush hour and school pick up / drop off periods where traffic to Shelfield Community Academy already blocks all surrounding roads.

Access from Green Lane is also unsuitable due to the narrow sections of the road and blind T-junction at one end and narrow canal bridge at the other. An increased number of vehicles on these sections will almost certainly cause an increase in traffic accidents and congestion. Recent redirection of bus routes along Green Lane (due to road works) have already proven that this road is unsuitable for increased traffic - with several incidents occurring at the narrow section opposite Saint Marks Church. Any additional access routes from the Pelsall direction will require the destruction of even more green belt land.

The green fields areas that will erased as part of the development are vital to the community with the area currently a popular route for walkers and dog owners. The public footpaths providing access to green areas between Shelfield and Pelsall that are unavailable elsewhere in the local area. The land itself is vital to local wildlife and supports a wide range of wildlife. The hedgerows that will be lost are home to large populations of bird, insects and mammalian species including endangered hedgehogs and bats. The area is also a vital part of green corridors that allow for migration of Red and Roe deer. The loss of this area to the local wild life population would be devastating.