Planning Update – 04 October 2014

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Summer is over and developers have been sharpening their pens with their desire to build yet more houses in Knaphill.

PLAN/2014/0938 128 High Street. Earlier this year a planning application to demolish 126/128 High Street and build four new houses and a block containing two flats was approved. This new application is to retain 126 and 128 and build 3 houses in the rear garden of No. 128. Access to the new houses would require the demolition of the extension to 128 and its garage.

It would appear that the developer has been unable to get the owners of 126 to sell and therefore this modified application has been submitted. We now have a planning application which is a pure garden grab and the proposed new houses will overlook the school’s open-air swimming pool.

PLAN/2014/0895 Waterers Rise Knaphill. This s a planning application from Woking Borough Council. They want to demolish 11 unused garages and build 3 affordable houses.

PLAN/2014/1026 60 Chobham Road. Installation of vehicular crossover/dropped kerb.

PLAN/2014/0980 114 Robin Hood Road. Proposed 2 storey side and part ground floor extension following demolition of existing garage.

PLAN/2014/1023 28 Swallow Rise. Build a single storey side extension.

A full planning report will be added next week.

A322 increased congestion already

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I see complaints regarding the A322 are getting louder already! Even making allowances for the current resurfacing of the road (night closures, raised ironworks etc), people in nearby villages are complaining of re-phased lights (fancy talk for changing the timings for the lights to change) and tailbacks into Bisley and West End.

Suggestion was made that changes have been made to junction traffic lights to restrict flow onto the A322 from adjoining roads up the main A322 which seems daft until you consider that the Brookwood Farm development (in Knaphill) comes with a much-touted brand new (untested?) ‘traffic management system’ which will easily cope with over capacity on the artery road. Perhaps the numbers have been revisited and the only way to make that area work is to make adjustments all along the A322? Maybe this was all part of the masterplan? Who knows?!

I dug this report up from SCC – Congestion Programme report – from 2013. In it, (p63) the A322/A324 junction is identified as a main challenge:

 The main challenges in the borough have been identified as:

  • Congestion in Woking town centre, Maybury, Knaphill and St Johns, and on the A324/A322 at Brookwood crossroads

  • Poor air quality in Knaphill

  • The railway line acts as a barrier to north-south movement in Woking town centre and also separates Maybury and Sheerwater, making it difficult to access the town centre and employment areas in Maybury and Sheerwater.

Clear as day that – the junction is a big problem. The report goes on to announce their proposed approach to solving this problem, which is to develop the Victoria Arch in Woking town centre and to provide improvements to the train station in… Woking town centre!

NOTHING to alleviate the stress on the A322. Oh yes and the funding will come, at least partly, from the CIL or s106 payments from the Brookwood Farm development (in Knaphill).

So as the KRA and numerous others pointed out to WBC, SCC, Highways and pretty much anyone that might be involved, the A322 is over congested and causing back ups and this is before people have even moved in to Brookwood Farm (in Knaphill…) and numerous other developments up the A322 have been built.

What will be done to alleviate the burden on the main road between the A3 and the M3 & M4? A couple of bike tracks. Maybe.

Not for Knaphill though. Despite footing the bill (a stretch I admit but Brookwood Farm developer payments should be spent on Knaphill infrastructure in my opinion) for a major development in the area, having the A322 identified as a major problem AND poor air quality, Knaphill village gets not so much as a pat on the back or an apology for being crapped on so often. Don’t expect any long-term improvement in air quality either. Even if measures are taken immediately to address the order currently issued for the top of Anchor Hill, as soon as people start moving in to Brookwood Farm it’s going to get worse again. Why? Because the exit from Sparvell Road forces traffic through the village due to a no right turn onto the A322 and people won’t want to wait at that Redding Way exit due to back ups.

As you might have picked up on, I am really cross about how Knaphill is repeatedly ignored by councils. The people that live here actually know the area and don’t rely on projections or unproven ‘traffic management’ methods. It wouldn’t hurt to acknowledge this and listen from time to time. If there are reasons for the decisions made that go in the face of popular opinion it wouldn’t hurt to state what they are and be open and honest about it, but I guess that’s just community minded thinking and we couldn’t have that could we.

In short, all the officials appear to know there is a serious issue with congestion on the A322 amongst other. They’re just not going to do anything about it.

 

Queens Road – Resurfacing

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The saga of Queens Road continues. The road was scheduled for full resurfacing during 2013/14 but the work was deferred due to Surrey County Council concentrating on the impact the floods had hit other parts of Woking. The resurfacing work is part of Operation Horizon and when SCC published their first work schedule for 2014/15 Queens Road was not listed. The KRA asked Cllr. Hussain to find out what was happening and we then received two different notices that the work was to be done.

At a meeting of SCC and WBC held on 24 September we were told that the earliest Queens Road could be resurfaced would be April 2015. The reason for this further delay, as explained by representatives of SCC, was that the tar that makes up the current road surface is contaminated. Both myself and Cllr. Hussain tried to find out more detail of what this meant but detail was hard to come by. The report from SCC included the following explanation:-

‘Coring of roads has identified seven roads have a high presence of Tar bound material. Since 1982 this material has been classified as a hazardous material and can only be disposed of at specialist landfill sites.

At current rates this would be over £150 per tonne adding nearly £300,000 to scheme costs.

However a new solution has been identified that will enable tar to be recycled and costs reduced to approximately £50 to £70 per tonne. The solution will not be available until April 2015 and therefore decision to defer these seven sites.

Surrey Highways have explored alternative solutions that could have been delivered this year however, although product was successful in removing tar cost, the overall construction methods were found to be invasive for residents and therefore an alternative solution has been identified.’

So they are the facts. When asked what will happen in the meantime Surrey Highways stated that they would maintain the road to the statutory level for road safety. Personally, I am not sure what that means.

Phil Stubbs

Knaphill YMCA 1947/48 Where are you now?

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Knaphill YMCA Football team 1947 / 194848A cracker of a mission – where are they now? This is the Knaphill YMCA football team from 1947/1948 having won the Woking & District league. Bernard Warden (Standing in the back row second from the right – “the good looking one”!) has asked if we can help in perhaps tracking some of the members down.
 
If you recognise yourself or others then please do contact Bernard via email – bernard_warden@outlook.com

The bollard question – which side are you on?

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A possible solution to easing the traffic on Knaphill High Street and Anchor Hill is to remove the bollards by The Vyne roundabout and direct more traffic round Redding Way. The single set of bollards currently working creates a dangerous situation with traffic passing in both directions on the open side of the road. The original raison d’etre for this road was to be one of the main routes off the planned bypass and the new houses on Brookwood Farm estate, which did not happen. Late in the debate on Brookwood Farm, it was decided to open Sparvell Road to Brookwood Farm traffic, which has a direct knock-on effect for traffic using Chobham Road, High Street and Anchor Hill.

Currently the only advice from SCC is to cycle, walk or use public transport more. The Government promised improvements to the infrastructure as well as new developments and funds to be made available for such improvements, but neither have yet been forthcoming for Knaphill.

In the past there have been several debates on the pros and cons of the bollards. Given the changed circumstances since they were originally installed, is it time to think again about whether to remove them? Let us have your opinions please, either on our website or by e-mail to the Residents’ Association (secretary@knaphill.org).

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Oktoberfest – Local family event with an international reputation

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OktoberfestOn Sunday October 19th the annual “Steam Trains & Fair Organs Oktoberfest!” will take place at Mizens Railway in Barrs Lane Knaphill from 12 noon until 5pm. This will be the seventh year that this event has taken place and it has become a firm favourite with local families as well as attracting visitors from all over the UK.

The Oktoberfest is centred around a festival of fascinating vintage mechanical fairground organs and features a host of additional attractions including an old time children’s fun fair complete with a vintage carousel and traditional swing boats which will keep the children happy and of course the 7½ inch gauge Mizens Railway will be in operation throughout the day giving the chance for visitors to enjoy a trip around the one mile circuit hauled by a genuine miniature steam locomotive!

The superb Fairground Models exhibition, which last year proved such a hit with children and adults alike, makes a return and the famous Brooklands Museum will be present with their mobile display unit and some fine exhibits from the Spirit of Brooklands collection of vintage vehicles.

As well as up to six large fairground organs playing at locations around the site a new attraction this year will be a gathering of smaller street or busker organs presented by members of the British Organ Grinders Association (BOGA). It is hoped that a dozen or more of these hand turned instruments will be presented by their owners in a newly created central picnic area of the Mizens site, which is accessed by the footbridge over the railway line.

Additional attractions will include a small craft tent, Chobham Country Farmers Market and other produce stalls, a beer tent (supplied by local pub The Garibaldi in Knaphill) and refreshments will be available including the traditional hot snack of the original “Oktoberfest” in Germany – authentic Bockwürst sausages!

Admission, which includes a full colour souvenir programme, is £2 for adults, £1 for children and £5 for a family ticket (two adults plus up to three children). Parking is free and the event gets underway at 12 noon. With something for everyone it’s a great local “day out with a difference” for all the family.

Village Meeting 2014

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We have organised another village meeting for residents to attend and have their direct questions about Knaphill answered by a panel of local representatives.

As with the last meeting in 2013, this will be chaired completely independently of the KRA and we have no say in questions or indeed control of the meeting at all. The Chair will again be the Reverend Richard Sherlock of the Knaphill Baptist Church in the High Street. You can send in questions via questions@knaphill.org (which are forwarded straight to Rev. Sherlock) or direct at revsherlock@gmail.com, please use whichever you’re most comfortable with.

Further details on the previous village meeting, including questions asked and an FAQ can be found on the page here – https://knaphill.org/about-our-association/village-meeting/

Knaphill village meeting 2014

 

Planning update – 31 August

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The following planning applications have been submitted for the Knaphill area.

PLAN/2014/0609 48 Lower Guildford Road
Erection of a detached 1 bedroom bungalow.

PLAN/2014/0679 Copthorne Meadows Farm, Chobham Road
Proposed residential development to provide 2 detached dwellings.

PLAN/2014/0754 Land opposite 54 & 55 Florence Way
Erection of 2 x 4 bed dwellings.

PLAN/2014/0777 Land adjacent to substation Hermitage Road
Amenity land to become operational land.

PLAN/2014/0864 North Barn, Botany Barns, Barrs Lane
Erection of an oak framed porch.

PLAN/2014/0964 15 Lane End Drive
Prior notification for a single storey rear extension to extend 5m maximum height of extension3.5m and height of eaves to be 2.9m.

Broadway flooded

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The Broadway is flooded from its junction with Queens Road to Sussex Road. I know SCC do not recognise this problem, they call it ponding. All I know is that in this section of road there is deep water on both the road and the pavement. Anyone walking along this stretch will just get soaked if not from the rain then from the wash caused by passing cars. It is a good job it isn’t a school day.

I am sure SCC, on instructions from Central Government, will say it is exceptional weather. In a report published by Woking Borough Council in October 2013 it stated that one of the problems facing Woking was poor maintenance of the drainage systems or systems with insufficient capacity have contributed to flooding incidents. No action has been taken by our Councillors to this report, it just rests on their bookshelf.