'The council has let us down'
Published on 24th May 2007 in News
The road sweeper begins its noisy, trundle up and down the road in a constant attempt to clear the dirt.
Residents living near the new Ben Bailey Housing Development, Reuben's Reach, at the end of Bretton Avenue near Hook are up in arms about the way the site is being run.
Residents from Bretton Avenue and Montrose Drive say they are 'fed up' with the filthy roads, the noise and the speed at which construction lorries travel.
Although there is a speed limit in place, one resident said the lorries went so fast over the speed bumps that her house shook. Another resident said: "We are all so fed up of it. This development was originally refused as we all signed a petition against it but they went ahead and did it anyway."
Another resident said: "We objected to the original planning requests and it was turned down. It was then resubmitted and we all thought our objections would stand. We were not told that we needed to complain again for the resubmission and it was passed. They shouldn't be building houses on there anyway, it's on a flood plain."
The resident also said that the site was accessible directly from Hook Road so there was no need for the lorries and trucks to go down Bretton Avenue.
Daily grind starts at 7.30am
The lorries and road sweepers go up and down the quiet road from 7.30am, sometimes through to 6pm, even though residents say they were told work would finish at 4.30pm.
One resident of Bretton Avenue said: "The lorries and road sweepers go up and down every day, including Saturdays. It's just not fair. I moved here because it was quiet and when all this is finished there is going to be traffic going to the new estate also." She added: "There are lots of elderly people living down here. They just don't need it."
Constant dirt and dust getting up residents' noses
Residents of Montrose Drive, where houses back onto the new development, also claim that they are unable to hang their washing out because of the dirt. Because there is no wheel-wash on the site the vehicles coming from the site are bringing dirt and dust with them, which is deposited on the street. Road sweepers go up and down the road constantly in an attempt to clear the dirt, causing noise and disturbance to the residents.
One resident who asked the foreman on the site why a wheel-wash was not in place was told that the contractors did not need one.
A resident on Montrose Drive said: "The council and everyone else has let us down. We feel like we are banging our heads against a brick wall. We haven't been consulted on anything. Nobody is willing to speak to us."
* Ben Bailey Homes did not wish to make a comment.