Victory for Local Residents

12.01.00pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 10th Jul 2008

Lib Dem Cllr. Paul Varnsverry

Local Lib Dem Councillor Paul Varnsverry (West Hunsbury) was contacted by local residents of Hunsbury Meadows after vegetation and landscaping which provided a sound barrier between their homes and the A43 was removed in order to replace a road sign with a larger one.

Paul called a meeting between NCC officers and local residents (who turned out to express their concerns regarding the new signage.

The County Council has now agreed to plant new trees - mature ones if available - of a species

that will conceal the new sign from properties in Brindlestone Close, and will also hopefully return sound attenuation and perimeter security to their original levels. Comment was made that NCC has failed to provide any form of consultation or engagement with the owners of the affected

properties, and it was a struggle to get them to agree to a site visit.

Local resident Mrs Lynn Goodwin said: "The sign is intrusive. We have lived in Brindlestone Close for 6 years very happily and suddenly overnight, metre wide metal posts have appeared 2 metres from our rear garden fence and about 7 meters higher than the existing sign, which was

previously not visible even from our upstairs bedroom.

"The NCC are quoting road safety guidance and I have been told that we would have had no chance to object as road signs do not need to go through the planning process. I find this unacceptable given the impact on our property. I really feel that the sign affects the amenity of my property. It was not there when we bought the property, and it seems unacceptable that this

could be allowed by planning laws given the proximity to housing. There must be other ways of ensuring road safety without impacting so enormously on existing residents."