Calls for an extra motorway junction to deal with traffic
Plan for 450 homes on paper mill site sparks petition
Fresh calls have been made for a new junction on the M20 to serve a proposed housing development.
Plans have been put forward to build 450 homes on the former Aylesford Newsprint base, as well as dedicating two thirds of the 100-acre site to commercial space.
The scheme, which includes a health centre, would redevelop the paper mill after production ceased in 2015. Plans for a school were dropped last month.
But opposition is mounting against the proposals, with many describing the area’s infrastructure as being at “breaking point” and raising concerns about existing traffic.
Now, borough councillors Mike Parry-Waller and Ben Walker, for Larkfield and Ditton respectively, have launched a petition calling for an extra motorway junction to cater for the increase in cars and lorries. They are asking for a new intersection between junction 4 at Leybourne and junction 5 at Aylesford.
They said: “It has been accepted by Kent Highways that roads in Aylesford, Ditton and Larkfield already exceed their capacity, blighting the lives of residents on a daily basis.
“This is unacceptable. Any development of the site without sufficient highways improvements will exacerbate this current traffic disruption, leading to an unprecedented increase in traffic flows. The development in one form or another is inevitable, undoubtedly resulting in increased traffic. We believe that by Highways England developing an additional junction, an optimal transport network with efficient movement of traffic will be established, minimising congestion.”
Highways England is set to turn the M20 into a smart motorway between junctions 3 for the M26 and 5 for Aylesford in 2018, with an extra lane and mandatory variable speed limits in a bid to ease congestion.
A spokesman said: “Our plans do not include any new junctions. If a developer wishes to propose one they will need to provide evidence demonstrating that M20 journeys remain safe and reliable.”
Administrators KPMG took on the New Hythe Business Park site after it shut with the loss of more than 300 jobs. Developers say plans will create more jobs than the mill and revitalise the area. A decision is expected this month.
View the petition at tinyurl. com/KMjunction