Dawlish Discussion

Please can anyone who knows anyone who lives in Carhaix Way alert them to the fact that Devon County Council Highways department regard CW as a through route from/to

Secmaton Lane/Gatehouse area to the A379 Exeter Road.

The increase in through traffic will also no doubt be felt by the residents of Pidgely Road.

The expression rat run comes to mind. 

Click on this link to see what Devon County Council is thinking re the increase in traffic caused by the new housing developments.

http://www.teignbridge.gov.uk/CHttpHandler.ashx?id=45539&p=0

All done by a cosy letter between the developers and Teignbridge District Council in January 2015, could even include more construction traffic accessing Bovis / Cavanagh site. Why tell the residents about what is a very major change to the original applications.

Would that be the letter from Cavanna Homes dated 9.1.15 where on page two is written:

“ The adopted roadway is taken to the eastern boundary of the development to meet up with the development road of “Secmaton Rise” by Strongvox. We have co-ordinated the line and level of the carriageway in order that the road will join and would propose to open this upon completion of the relevant area of each development. Cavanna Homes will complete Parcel 9 at the latter part of the year”.  

Now, for what it is worth, I always thought it was agreed that the two halves of the extended Carhaix Way (the Cavanna bit and the Strongvox bit) should indeed meet up and be open. However, back in 2008/9 when both schemes were given outline planning permission I thought that this opening up of Carhaix Way was to be for pedestrians, cyclists and buses only. 

When and why did that get altered? 

Looks to me like another case of backround talks deciding that it should be for all traffic, after all if its open for buses then any vehicle can go through. Unless of course there is an electronic barrier that only buses have the key to. Welcome to the party Carhaix Way now TDC has dumped on you and I thought it was just Secmaton Lane they had a grudge for.

By the way, despite what Cavanna say in their letter (see my post above) about the new extension of Carhaix Way

".........we have co-ordinated the line and level of the carriageway in order that the road will join......" that is not necessarily correct.

At least it isn't correct to this particular layperson's eyes.

I am not a highways engineer so there may be some perfectly valid engineering reason to explain why it is that where the Cavanna estate meets the Strongvox estate, where the Cavanna bit of Carhaix Way meets the Strongvox bit of Carhaix Way, that whilst the line of these two extensions of Carhaix Way may have been co-ordinated the two levels most certainly haven't! They are at two different heights! Go and take a look for yourselves.

Perhaps those more technically savvy than me could go along and take some pictures of this mismatch in road height and post the pics on here.         

Maybe that's the way they stop cars running through, but surely that will stop buses too. Haven't been up there yet but will try today. 

Understand it's something to do with differences in datum levels between the two developments. Engineer looking into it.  

So it is going to be an exit from Bovis / Cavanagh to Exeter Road, good luck Carhaix.

Well, it won't be just those living on Bovis/Cavanna using Carhaix Way to Exeter Road will it? Surely it will be those living over in the Gatehouse/Newlands/top part of Elm Grove Road areas who will do likewise? And also, until the link road is built and is accessible for all forms of vehicles, then the more dwellings that get built in the DA2 area the more Carhaix Way will get used by more and more vehicles.

(and I suspect those living on Pidgely Road will notice the difference in traffic usage as well as those living on Carhaix Way.).     

Now, compare the newly constructed Carhaix Way with this desription by TDC planners of how the link road should look (when built!). Note that it is to be designed to discourage vehicles from using it as a cut through to the A379. Ha, ha , ha, ha, oh dear I'm splitting my sides

So that description of the "avenue" makes it almost certain that Carhaix will be the rat run.