I attended the Public Examination session on 13 October dealing with the proposed allocation of land in Old Milverton for residential development and Park and Ride uses. My understanding from that session was that Warwick District Council Officers agreed to remove the Old Milverton site from the areas of search for a Park and Ride facility. Therefore, the Old Milverton site seems now to have been included in error, as it was not included in the Submitted Plan. Including the Old Milverton site in the areas of search just blights neighbouring properties.

Anyway, the proposal is confused. WDC acknowledges that to make park and ride work it will have to reduce the available parking in Leamington town centre and increase parking charges there, but it is spending £6 million on a new multi-story car park, which will increase the availability of parking. There is sufficient car parking available in the town, so no one will use park and ride. The proposed park and ride is not a proper park and ride scheme as there will be no dedicated buses, just a car park where passengers leave their cars and catch existing bus services. It will increase travel times and costs. Less parking in Leamington will reduce the Councils' parking revenues.

Further, Stage Coach (the Park and Ride operators) say that dedicated bus lanes on the A452 are necessary, but there are no funds to make the A452 a dual carriage way and that proposal has been withdrawn from the local plan.