COTSWOLD District Council (CDC) have expressed their concern about a scheme that will generate increased traffic and pollution.

Before you think they are referring to the Chesterton development, they are not. Instead this is the Cirencester Park & Ride scheme that they will NOT be pursuing.

Chairman Cllr Mark Harris explains, “Several people have suggested that Cirencester might benefit from a park and ride facility but specialists in this field have advised that in rural areas of Britain there are serious downsides to these schemes. In particular, the emissions produced outweigh the emissions prevented because many motorists have to go out of their way to use park and ride sites. Furthermore there are significant environmental issues in creating a carpark on what is likely to be a greenfield site.

“What this all means is that a small reduction in urban traffic is offset by the generation of extra traffic beyond town boundaries – and a marked overall increase in emissions.”

This is the same council that have approved the Outline Planning Application for the Chesterton development of 2350 houses to be built on productive farmland, at Chesterton.

When the Chesterton development was first talked about a Park and Ride scheme was one of the proposals put forward to reduce the impact of traffic into the town, but now it will be dropped.

At Save Our Cirencester we are not writing this letter because we are in support of a Park & Ride scheme, but to highlight the fact that CDC has double standards and have now perfected the art of hypocracy.

This standard of behaviour does not serve the people of Cirencester at all well.

Mark Pratley

Chairman of SOC (Save Our Cirencester)