The Highways Agency (HA) together with Warwickshire County Council (WCC) is currently undertaking an assessment of the implications of the strategic housing and employment allocations proposed in the Council's Core Strategy Preferred Options paper for both the Strategic Road Network (SRN) and the local road network. This work is expected to be completed by June 2010 and will help determing what, if any, measures to mitigate the impact of the proposed development options on the SRN will be requred. This work should also help to inform the development of the Council's Infrastructure Delivery Plan, which will underping the Core Stretegy.

Given the uncertainty about which, if any, of the alternative sites are suitable for development, the HA has been unable to undertake any such detailed assessment of the traffic impacts of these sites at this time but would wish to do so when there is greater clarity. For the purposes of responding to this consultation, we have, therefore, undertaken a qualitative assesment of each of the sites focussing on the potential impacts of each site on the SRN and their suitabilty in terms of sustainability.

Site 4 lies to the North of, but adjacent to the northern fringe of Warwick. Part of the site is a registered park and garden for Guys Cliffe and we understand that if the site were to come forward for development, it would include low density housing and open space.

The plans for the site clearly show that it is bisected by the A46 and that any primary access would be directly from or close to the A46/B4115 Warwick Bypass junction. The A46 would create a physical barrier, which would reduce site permeability meaning that any development north of the A46 could not easily travel southwards without passing through the SRN junction. Given the potential size of the development, the proximity of the SRN and the lack of site permeability, we consider that there is likely to be a significant impact on the A46 and the A46/B4115 junction.

All six of the proposed alternative sites are considered to have some impact upon the SRN. It is expected that Site 2 would have the least impact, due to the relative distance from the M40, and the number of local services, amenities, and employment sites within the neighbouring areas. The remaining sites would have a more noticeable impact upon the SRN. Site 6 in particular has the potential to severely impact upon some sensitive locations along the A46. As set out above, we would, of course, wish to undertake further detailed assessment of the traffic impacts of the sites on the SRN when there is greater clarity about which, if any, sites are considered to be suitable for development.