Over 9 hectares of ancient woodland at risk due to road widening plans in Kent.
The Highways Agency is planning to widen a stretch of the A21 between Tonbridge and Pembury in Kent. If plans go ahead they will result in the direct loss of 9 hectares of irreplaceable ancient woodland.
Anyone who has visited the area will know that there are traffic issues so solutions needs to be found. However this scheme will have a substantial negative impact on the environment whilst only being a short term fix for the problem.
The current situation
An inquiry into the scheme was due to start in July 2010. Although we were ready to defend ancient woodland 2011 spending review withdrew immediate funding.
Why we are objecting
This will result in the unnecessary loss of nine hectares of our precious ancient woodland. What is worse is that the widening only provides a temporary fix for a much bigger problem.
Research into road improvements demonstrates traffic levels generally rise above original predictions. This has an inevitable knock on effect on carbon dioxide emissions and noise levels. An example is the M25, where traffic on a newly widened stretch doubled within a year.
A consistent lack of improvement to walking and public transport options means that volume of traffic is likely to keep rising resulting in the route becoming saturated again in the future.
The Highways Agency has been widening short stretches of the A21 for a number of years. Whilst this allows the road to be widened in manageable sections it downplays the environmental impact as the sections are never considered cumulatively. Widening ‘by stealth’ and helps to avoid a large scheme that could be very contentious.