Safety fears over plans for Risborough bypass

The western relief road between Aylesbury and Wycombe would divert traffic off the A4010 onto Shootacre Lane, which lies within the Chilterns AONB.

Of the route options proposed by Wycombe District Council, one continues along Picts Lane and the other heads to the east of Horsenden, which is a Conservation Area.

As part of a consultation on the plans, The Bypass ActioN Group (BANG) has submitted an expert report which raises safety concerns.

It points to an increased risk for pedestrians and horse riders and potential conflict between through traffic and residents entering and exiting their drives.

BANG co-ordinator Monica Nelson said: “Our independent transport report exposes some serious flaws in the council’s bypass plans.

“For the safety of residents and the efficiency of traffic flow, it makes sense to avoid existing residential areas when planning a new bypass.

“Aside from the safety issue, this is an important AONB area which is much-used and valued by the local community. Extreme care needs to be taken to preserve and protect it for future generations.”

The Chiltern Conservation Board has also objected to the bypass and the 2,500 new homes which are proposed for the town.

Wycombe District Council said it is ‘very grateful to everyone who took the time to respond to the recent consultation’ – it received around 400 responses.

It said the route options were tested against a range of criteia including relieving town centre traffic, dealing with new traffic from the expanded town, its environmental impact and viability.

The two options presented in the draft plan performed best against these requirements, it said.

Cabinet ,ember for planning and sustainability David Johncock said: “In the public meetings in March, we promised to look again at options around Shootacre Lane and Picts Lane to see if we could fine tune these to find a better solution here.

“We will continue to work on this as we review all the feedback that comes in from the draft plan consultation.”