Local Plan 2011-2031 Proposed Submission Draft

The North Herts District Council anticipates that there will be a continued increase in out-commuting from North Herts over the plan period which will lead to increased pressure on an infrastructure already under strain. We have recently heard that the rail service from Baldock is about about to be reduced particularly during off peak hours . In addition bus services have been greatly curtailed over recent years and the news from the BBC just this morning is that local government funding for bus services has been reduced. Such a large development proposed for this part of Baldock will inevitably attract a significant number of commuters who will expect to use the local rail services or road systems. it is proposed that provision will be made to increase employment opportunities within the town , but these will be grossly insufficient for the huge number of people who will be coming to the town and they will have no option but to commute out of the town particularly to London or Cambridge where salaries are sufficiently higher for people to be able to afford to buy housing in the area! Baldock is already suffering severe congestion on its roads and this development will massively impact on what is already a significant problem. This goes against the NPPF which seeks to create high quality developments that respect and improve their surroundings. Prior to the building of the Baldock bypass levels of asthma in local children were well above the national average, since the bypass was opened air quality has improved in and around the town and levels of childhood asthma have improved. The sheer scale of this proposed development will inevitably increase air pollution once again. Children walking to school will encounter heavy traffic and hence air pollution. Baldock sits in a "bowl" and as a result air pollution is inevitable with the vast increase in traffic which will result from this number of dwellings.