Daniel is fully airborne again and flying like an eagle over the new development – called Kingsgate, between the Wootton Road and the Dunmore Road.
Some of the houses are complete or nearing completion.
Others are just outlines in the snow.
Abingdon had stopped expanding after the large expansion through the 1940s-1980s, but now Abingdon is growing again.
Yes and the promised diamond interchange to take traffic away from the roundabout by the police station and down the Southbound A 34 has not started. As usual these things are promised to enable h ouses to be built. The developers are racing away with all the new houses. Another false promise that never comes about. I was in the queue down the Drayton Road waiting to go down to Tesco. It is apparent that the traffic is getting worse around Abingdon. Abingdon has seen nothing yet. Expect gridlock in the future. Doctors in Abingdon are reviewing their patient lists as they are trying to cope with the expected thousands of new patients they are expected to have to accommodate. At one surgery patients who are deemed to be just outside their catchment area have been given notice that they are being removed from the list to make way for new people.
Someone from OCC council said at the planning meeting for the new Aldi that the planning application for the diamond interchange at Lodge Hill would be submitted ‘sometime in the new year’
Which new year that is is anyone’s guess!
I wonder why planning permission is granted when the pre-existing condition hasn’t been fulfilled. I supposed it will be said that it’s because the road improvement will have to come out of the public purse while the housing estates are paid for by the developers.
But if the decision was to build a full interchange before further development, then the permission should not have been given. And I bet that we will now be told that it wasn’t a decision – just a promise that cannot be kept because Covid has dried up the Treasury.
Rightly or wrongly, there was no precondition on what is now known as the Kingsgate development; the condition on the “Abbey Fields” one was that “No more than 400 dwellings shall be occupied until a contract for the construction works to provide the south facing A34 Lodge Hill slip roads has been awarded by the County Council.”
A report from the County Council to last night’s Town Council meeting said “Latest information from officers is that the planning application is on track for submission within the next few months this winter (2021/2022), with a view to starting onsite works next summer/autumn. At the moment the scheme is progressing through planning and design stages as intended following the ‘virtual exhibition’ earlier this year and subsequent incorporation of feedback. “
Thanks, Hester. Information is a good disinfectant for rumour – or, in my case, speculation. 😉
Yes, wouldn’t it be good if the Councils recognised that and had easily accessible areas on their websites, kept up-to-date, with basic factual information on matters of public interest!
As a great woman once said;
“blah, blah, blah”….
Thanks Hester: it’s always great to have someone posting who actually has some information rather than idle speculation and rumour. That’s not to say that we have to LIKE the facts if course;
I’d rather we didn’t have either. Much to much housing being built in places that can’t support new developments. Taking the countryside away for more little boxes. Developers wont be happy until the whole country is built over.
As for the interchange. Im pleased in one way it hasn’t gone ahead. Judging by the number of accidents and delays on the A34 going north. Drivers would use the Abingdon North junction to come off to avoid traffic jams on the A34 and make Abingdon’s traffic worse than it already is.
It is a bit of a concern what the roads in and around North Abingdon are like once Kings Gate (200 houses), Aldi, Abbey Fields (950 houses) plus the new houses in Radley (240) plus the fully open Redrow development on the edge of Kennington are all finished.
If drivers start using the Abingdon ring road as a rat run with all the extra detailed above are in place then it could get very congested at peak times.
Looks like Lodge Hill funding may be sorted… https://www.heraldseries.co.uk/news/19759996.15m-funding-shifted-away-bicester-road-work-abingdon-scheme/
Mmm – we have been told for a few years now that the funding was all in place. I detect smoke and mirrors!
It’s commendable that you keep on keeping on Hester; I don’t think anyone else even tries to pay attention as it’s always “jam tomorrow”.
I spent my first 15 years here giving a damn; but I’ve been beaten in to submission…no one of any relevance seems to believe that Abingdon needs help. I first thought it was just how it was when I arrived…but I’ve seen many come and go, Ill decision after odd and bizarre ill decision…yet there is never, EVER any discernable change.
It’s frankly too disheartening and too depressing to give a damn any more. Too much effort for far to little difference.
Abingdon “doesn’t work” but there seems no interest, no intellect, no thought, no hope in making that situation any different. If leadership truly leads from the front…we will continue to be doomed. I have no answers….only tears. And that’s after a brief 15 years….goodness knows how the proper Abingdonians may feel.
I landed here by chance. I like it. It’s become my home. I have sunk roots here – house, wife, children…but it’s not [the place] I hoped it would be.
I’ve noticed many of the old guard protagonists for Abingdon have fallen by the wayside; it seems the turning point was Moreland Gardens when we were well and truly smacked round the chops that “it doesn’t matter what we, the community, the people, the council, the other council, the planners all think…your voice doesn’t matter”.
1200 houses in Abingdon…Diamond interchange…?…yeah…whatever…
Chris, are you wanting to keep the gridlock?
One accident every maybe 6 months on A34 when compared to constsnt gridlock down the Oxford Rd from Tesco Express and girls Catholic school every day?
With what 50 useless cllrs of VWDC and another 50 on SODC, one could partially remove much of the daily gridlock and pollution by turning the lights that lead to VWHDC and SODC into a roundabout and the lights at start of one way system.
Do the cllrs or staff at these 2 councils care anything?
If they cant even apply a little common sense and set a sensible traffic system what hope is there for any competence in planning?
How Abingdon has to rely upon a 500 yr old bridge just about sums up how Abingdon has been completely sidelined for 500 years…
Whether its a Tory MP landowners opposing a railway station for 25 years to today’s current crop of clearly useless councillors, Abingdon the county town of Berkshire for 300 yrs has been constantly ill served.
One could build the 2 unbuilt Abingdon North interchange slip roads onto the A34 going South, in maybe 3 weekends at a cost of maybe £100,000.
It’s been promised for what 25 yrs; nothing ever happens.
Traffic system is the responsibility of the County Council rather than the District Nick, so you need to blame a different set of councillors.
Would be much more straightforward if they were combined but the government seems disinterested in the various proposals for a simpler unitary system, where it is clearer who is responsible for what.
We have lived in Abingdon for 40 years we do like it here and seen a lot of changes. The last few years all the development seems to be at th lodge hill area the understanding was if housing was built the link road would be built. Is it because the vwdc are to soft the vwdc should have said link road first houses after or is it who lives around the oxford road area.