The Ludgvan Neighbourhood Development Plan (NDP) will go to referendum on Thursday 15 July 2021.
Copies of the referendum version of the draft neighbourhood plan are available to view online at:
Neighbourhood Plans have already been adopted in many towns and parishes in Cornwall, they are the most local of the various levels of planning policy and are developed in consultation with the local community.
The Ludgvan Neighbourhood Plan specifically covers a number of issues, including:
- the natural environment
- built environment and heritage
- housing
- community, facilities and services
- transport and travel
- business and jobs
Since the announcement of the Ludgvan NDP referendum, the parish council has been asked about the position of the plan regarding calls from many in the community for a bypass for the section of the A30 that goes through the parish.
There is nothing that has been identified in the Neighbourhood Plan that would hinder any plans for a bypass, and there can be separate, more appropriate, processes to be followed, to bring about traffic and roads improvements.
Included in the referendum version of the neighbourhood plan (ref: 8.4):
What seems to be an ever-increasing volume of traffic along the A30 trunk road has had a negative environmental impact on those settlements that straddle this vital artery. The need to ensure a steady and continuous traffic flow of high volume has meant parking restrictions, which has affected the use, accessibility and appeal of some of the properties. The impact of the proposed growth at Long Rock could have an even more deleterious long-term effect on Crowlas, Whitecross, Canon’s Town and Rose-an-Grouse.
For this reason, Ludgvan Parish Council has shown its concern and expressed support for a range of immediate improvements to roads in the Parish, largely in the interests of road safety and reducing congestion; as well as supporting the principle of a bypass that includes the stretch of road between St Erth and Newtown roundabouts. A bypass would have a significant impact on future neighbourhood planning. Commitment to it would necessitate the preparation of a new Neighbourhood Plan.
Also, at paragraph 11.9 of the referendum version of the Neighbourhood Plan:
Ludgvan Parish Council resolved in 2017 to make the delivery of ‘Route Study improvements’ its priority in respect of roads in the Parish; and to support the principle of a bypass that includes the stretch of road between St Erth and Newtown roundabouts. We will continue to work with the highway authorities to achieve acceptable solutions in the medium and long-term. We must reduce the adverse impact of the current transport infrastructure and make local travel a more sustainable, safe and enjoyable activity.
The limitations of the neighbourhood planning process are acknowledged at paragraph 11.8, where it is stated that: The focus of the Neighbourhood Plan are those traffic issues and transport opportunities that can be addressed at the neighbourhood planning level’
There is the potential for additional policies to be added to future revisions of the NDP document, if adopted.
If the plan is not adopted at this stage, then the parish council and Cornwall Council would need to make decisions on how to proceed. A re-working of the neighbourhood plan could be one of the options considered, but it is not an agreed course of action and so should not be assumed to be the case.
Away from the neighbourhood planning process, Ludgvan Parish Council supports calls for changes to the A30 through the Ludgvan Parish. In May 2020 the parish council called on Highways England and Cornwall Council to actively consider:
- 30mph and 40mph speed limits from Newtown to Rose-an-Grouse, with 30mph through built up areas
- a solution to Crowlas crossroads
- pedestrian crossings at Canonstown, Cockwells and Whitecross
- and to consider the A30 from Camborne to Newtown with the aim of dualling the route throughout, bypassing more built up areas, such as those between the St Erth roundabout and the Newtown Roundabout.
The Parish Council is also actively working with neighbouring town and parish councils and the local MP, with the next step being the commissioning of a report by a traffic consultant, to evidence and inform calls for road improvements. In April 2021 Ludgvan Parish Council committed the sum of £2,000 towards the traffic consultant’s report, the Case for Action, which will be combined with contributions from other local councils to fund this piece of work.
6 July 2021