The proposed access point via Spindlewood Drive to Meads Road through an existing field gate is totally inappropriate. Furthermore the roads adjoining this pint namely Meads Road and Maple Walk South are already overused for the nature of the roads.

Meads Road is a narrow road which at present normally has only one lane clear for transiting traffic. Its junction with Cooden Sea Road is often seriously congested by:

* traffic backed up from the Little Common roundabout
* cars and lorries trying to enter/exit the parking at the local Tesco
* lorries parked in the area while delivering goods to Tesco and other shops etc.
* traffic halted by the two pedestrian crossings.

This combination already regularly causes grid lock within the village area which the traffic for an additional 250 houses will make even more intolerable.

Maple Walk South is a one track road without a pedestrian pavement and is already very dangerous for the hard of hearing, the partially sighted and school children going to/from school, the village centre and the Cooden Beach station area let alone the more able bodied.

Maple Walk South is hardly wide enough for two cars to pass in parts and is reduced to a single track road over much of its length. It is a private/unadopted road maintained at the expense of the frontagers. Both its construction and maintenance have been based on servicing the very low number of adjacent houses - not a large housing estate.

Maple Walk south is already a "rat run" overused by cars, vans and lorries driving at excessive speeds while visiting local properties, the village and beyond. The further increase in traffic that will result from all vehicles travelling to and from the proposed development via Cooden Sea Road and Bexhill town, the local beach and railway station will make this one track narrow road without a pavement even more hazardous. Furthermore the increased traffic usage will also put an unacceptable additional burden on the frontagers in terms of increased road maintenance costs.

Regardless of what happens concerning the proposed development MapIe Walk South should be made be a cul de sac which has its access/egress via Maple Walk, Maple Avenue
and CIavering WaIk.

Any road links from any Spindlewood development should have access road(s) to Barnhorn Road and only Barnhorn Road. An access road that involves the use of Spindlewood Drive, Meads Road, Maple Walk South, Maple Walk or Maple Avenue in any way should not be considered under any circumstances.

Maple Walk South leads into Maple Walk and Maple Avenue which are also both private unadopted roads maintained by the frontagers and are therefore of limited width and of a lesser standard of construction compared to those of standard roads. Both are also already a 'rat run' overused by cars, vans and lorries driving at excessive speeds while visiting local properties, the village and beyond. The further increase in traffic that will result from all vehicles travelling to and from the proposed development via Cooden Sea Road and Bexhill town, the local beach and the railway station will make these roads without a pavements even more
hazardous. Furthermore their increased traffic usage will also put an unacceptable additional burden on the frontagers in terms of increased road maintenance costs as these roads were originally built to a standard appropriate to serving the limited number of properties along them not an extra 160 houses.

Both these very dangerous walks for pedestrians should immediately and regardless of the proposed development be made part of a cul de sac which has its access/egress via Cooden Sea road and Clavering Walk.

Environment

The pleasant village nature of Littte Common and its environs has suffered already from increased traffic with the roundabout on the A259 now regularly having; traffic queuing simultaneously on three of its main connecting roads i.e. traffic on the:

- Bamhom Road daily extends back to the beginning of the 40MPH speed restriction
and on numerous occasions to the Bexhill Service Station at the junction of Coneybrook Lane*.
- Little Common Road daily extends back to its junction with Broad Oak*.
*In both cases these have become worse since the opening of the link rood.
- Cooden Sea Road daily extends back to the pedestrian crossing in the village.

In addition Birkdale also has a level of traffic usage that causes daily grid lock and lorries delivering to the Tesco convenience store and other shops daily causes traffic jams in the heart of village.

These traffic jams all regularly disrupt bus services etc.

The length of traffic tailbacks on the A239 roundabout are even longer during the holiday months and particularly over the bank holiday periods etc.

When assessing the current traffic queuing on the A259 at the Little Common roundabout it should be noted that this is currently significantly alleviated by traffic using Sluice Lane and Herbrand Walk both narrow lanes that follow the coast between the A271/A259 Pevensey Bypass roundabout and Cooden Beach Railway Station. During peak daily travelling times this route has a constant flow of traffic in both directions that is avoiding the major congestion at the Little Common roundabout.

The creation of additional housing in the area will undoubtedly only worsen the current traffic congestion at the Little common roundabout with longer and more frequent and even worse vehicle congestion occurring. This traffic congestion will inevitably and undoubtedly cause increased pollution in the area.


The infrastructure servicing Little Common and immediate neighbourhoods is already
inadequate with congested roads and limited vehicle parking facilities, schooling, medical facilities, shops and utilities that were originally created to serve a much smaller level of demand and housing density than now let alone the future. Imposing the additional requirements resulting from another 160 properties would be irresponsible.

Utilities

The utilities serving the Little Common area i.e. water, sewage and flood prevention etc. were all created for a much lower usage level than currently exists and are unlikely to cope with the requirements of two significant new housing developments. In particular water and sewage services and flood prevention in the Spindlewood area are hardly coping with existing demand and will not be able to cope with the demand of a further 160 houses.

The infra-structure of the area in terms of roads, schools, shops, parking, medical facilities (particularly local doctor's surgery), and transport links are all already inadequate for the current Population 'let alone a population increase of at least 650 resulting from the building of an additional 160 houses.

The roadway access in particular for this proposed Spindlewood development is
inappropriate in that it would result in a dramatic increase in traffic along local unadopted roads These have been paid for and maintained at the cost of the frontagers. These unadopted roads were originally constructed to a standard required to service the limited number of properties along these roads and not to service a development of 160 houses and the resulting vehicle road usage at Spindlewood.

Housing Density.

The 160 houses in the Spindlewood proposal is excessive and disproportionate to the housing density levels in the adjacent roads and wider area. Furthermore their design and style are out of keeping with those in the surrounding area. This combination will change the mature of the area from a nicely balanced housing area into a jumble of uncoordinated mixture of property densities, sizes and styles.

Air Pollution

Increasing traffic congestion particularly on the Barnhorn Road, Little Common Road and in the Little Common village centre will all result in dramatic increase in pollution levels.

Residential Housing Targets.

With reference to housing targets and time scales the views of local residents should be the overriding priority rather than following the dictates of central government. Consequently a moratorium for at least 10 years should be imposed on the building of any type on the Spindlewood site. The achievement of current targets should be met by developing sites BX120 (Barnhorn Green), BX124 (North Bexhill Access Road and BX101 (North Eye) and other unidentified ad hoc commissions. This would mean no decision is necessary on the Spindlewood
site at this stage if ever particularly if the number of houses likely to be purchased for holiday homes and/or rental property is taken into account. Both hardly reasons for ruining the environment of the Spindlewood and wider Little Common community.

Aesthetics

Developing Spindlewood would destroy one of the few remaining traditional type of
aesthetic residential areas in the Rother District catchment.

The additional traffic along Maple Walk South, Maple Walk, Little Twitten, Maple Avenue, will turn these currently unadopted roads from routes that are used in the main by those residing in the immediate area to mini super highways with traffic from 160 extra houses using them for travelling to and from the:-

- South area of Little Common doctors surgery and shops and then onward via Birkdale to The Hastings-Direct area, the police station and adjacent commercial sites, and then to the Bexhill town centre and railway station and then again onward to Ravenside and Hastings.

- Cooden Beach Station, Cooden Beach Hotel and The Cooden Beach shore and onward to the Bexhill town centre, the Bexhill promenade and then further onward to Ravenside and Hastings.

Maple Walk, Little Twitted and Maple Avenue are all unadopted roads and as
Such are maintained at the of cost the frontagers and as such were originally constructed to a standard commensurate and subsequently maintained for the traffic from the limited number Of properties along the roads and not for the use of vehicles from 160 additional properties. In Addition Maple Walk South 'is very narrow and along most of its distant a single track "road".
Furthermore, Maple Walk South, Maple Walk, Little Twitten and Maple Avenue do not have any separation for pedestrians and vehicles, (in other words no pavements).

Conservation

Spindlewood and the adjacent t area of Cooden and the west of Little Common are semi-rural areas consisting of a good balance of housing types, woodland and open common type and the building of another 160 houses will turn it into another area of urban sprawl. This will not only be to the detriment of the human inhabitants but also specific wildlife (badgers, foxes etc.) and also the general fauna and flora of the area. The human inhabitants of the area have chosen the area and paid substantially above the local property prices for this privilege which will be destroyed by the unnecessary development of 160 houses at this location rather than elsewhere.