Anger over camp bid on rural road

Locals believe their views have been snubbed

Members of a rural Perthshire community believe they have been “totally ignored” by council officials who have recommended a proposed eco campsite be approved.

The council’s development management committee will be asked to approve Eco Camp Scotland’s second application to site a mixture of camping “pods” and holiday lodges within woods near Moneydie next week - despite almost everyone living in the village objecting to the proposal.

Interim development quality manager Ann Condliffe asserts in her report recommending the camp comprising 15 “pods” and five lodges - be approved “is not considered to generate a level of traffic which would be of significant detriment to the local area or which cannot be accommodated on the existing road network.”

But one objector told the PA this week 29 of the 32 local people she says objected to the proposal complained it could increase the number of traffic incidents on an unclassified road four metres wide leading to it she says has “many blind sighted double bends.”

Explaining the route is already heavily used by farmers driving tractors and other machinery she pointed out a second developer, Edinburghbased Exclusive Resorts, has lodged an as yet undetermined application to create a separate “hutting” holiday development within woods further along the same unclassified road.

She further pointed out that in addition to the anticipated future increase in lorries using the route when nearby commercial forests are being cut down, PKC also approved the creation of a new agricultural warehouse halfway between the two proposals expected to accept over a thousand deliveries by road a year.

“This road has become a rat run for traffic seeking to avoid hold ups on the A9 at Inveralmond and at Luncarty,” she went on. “Things are getting so bad that locals are now calling this stretch of road the third lane of the A9.

“They drive at speeds which are inappropriate for narrow country roads. This caused three serious collisions last summer.

“All three accidents were very serious with all three blue light services in attendance and the air ambulance attending on one occasion. It is believed that life-changing injuries were sustained in at least one of these accidents.

“This situation is only going to get worse as work begins on dualling the A9 and the Cross Tay [Link] Road.”

Speaking specifically about Eco Camp Scotland’s proposal she went on: “There were 32 letters of objection from the local community. This is nearly the entirety of the village - there are only 33 houses within one-and-a-half miles of these campsites.

Ms Condliffe’s report recommending Eco Camp Scotland’s application be approved states: “Letters of representation have identified concerns regarding the traffic generated by the proposal.

“In terms of weekday trips the development would generate three trips in the AM peak and three trips in the PM peak. At the weekend the development is likely to generate nine trips in the AM peak and seven trips in the PM peak.

“It is clear the majority of visitors to the site will arrive by private car, however, there are direct links to the cycle networks and core path network in the local area.

“Transport planning have offered no objection to the proposal.

“On that basis the proposal is considered to comply with [council] policy.”

The planning and development management committee will decide whether or not to approve the proposal on Wednesday next week.