Homes England recognises the need for major development to be supported by appropriate and necessary on and off-site infrastructure.
In the capacity as Governments housing agency, Homes England is uniquely placed to support the delivery of strategic sites through the delivery of essential infrastructure.
Chalgrove Airfield Transport Strategy
Homes England is committed to ensuring that Chalgrove Airfield is connected and accessible. The Agency has been working with stakeholders for the past three years to develop the transport strategy. It has also been developed through extensive engagement with local communities with the aim of ensuring that the proposals meet the specific needs of individual areas. The Strategy seeks to mitigate the traffic impact of development at Chalgrove Airfield, improve local roads and provide transport improvement across the sub-region and help address existing issues.
The Transport Strategy for Chalgrove Airfield takes a hierarchical approach that’s benefits both existing communities and future residents by seeking to reduce the need to travel, then maximise the use of sustainable transport choices, beforemitigating any residual affects:
1) Reducing the need to travel – the development proposes a significant level of facilities on site at a new mixed use town centre, employment areas, secondary and primary schools, health, cultural and leisure facilities reducing the need for existing and future residents to travel to many services and facilities which will be provided within the Chalgrove Airfield development.
2) Promoting and enhancing opportunities for sustainable travel – providing for and encouraging sustainable travel has been a key consideration of our development proposals which will provide:
- A network of pedestrian and cycle routes within the development and linking
to the wider area
- A realigned B480 through the development to enable an integrated place,
manage the transport impact and allow safe passage from Chalgrove Airfield
to the Village on foot or by bike
- Investment into new public transport with a number of new bus services to
improve public transport accessibility
3) Providing infrastructure – significant upgrade to the highways in the local
area, addressing known issues in surrounding villages which include major
investment in:
- Directly delivering and funding bypasses at Stadhampton,Chiselhampton and Cuxham which will help address existing challenges on the road network as well as mitigating the impact of the Chalgrove Airfield development.
- Improvements to Hollantide Lane.
- Proportionate contributions to Watlington and Benson Edge Roads.
- Contributions to public realm and traffic calming measures at Little Milton, Great Haseley, Pyrton, Berrick Salome and Brightwell Salome.
- Contributions to the Oxford Gateway Bus Capacity Improvements Scheme.
Local Engagement
Homes England engaged extensively with Oxfordshire County Council and stakeholders in Stadhampton, Chiselhampton and Cuxham in 2018 and considered a number of options for transport improvements to mitigate the potential highway impacts from the development proposals at Chalgrove Airfield.
Throughout 2018 and 2019 Homes England engaged with local stakeholders, landowners and the local communities on the preferred bypass routes and undertook three stages of engagement and consultation with numerous stakeholders and included:
Stage 1 – Collaboratively Identifying and assessing options
Stage 2 – Technical consultation of bypass options
Stage 3 – Public consultation of preferred alignments
Following the public consultation, Homes England commissioned a programme of surveys and other baseline assessments (April – October 2019) which were necessary to better understand the environmental conditions along the preferred alignments.
Homes England would like to take the opportunity to thank all off those who provided feedback on the bypass proposals as well as thanking the numerous landowners who have co-operated with us whilst surveys were undertaken, these have been necessary to inform the proposals.
Homes England also acknowledges that some time has passed since formally consulting on the bypass proposals and follow up engagement with stakeholders which took place over spring/summer 2019. In May 2019, South Oxfordshire’s new council administration took the decision to review how it was going to proceed with the emerging Local Plan. Homes England took the decision to not progress any further work on the bypass proposals (except completing surveys mentioned above) until there was more clarity around how the emerging local plan was to be progressed.
This time has enabled Homes England to fully reflect on the feedback provided at consultation as well as ensuring that the implications of the wider discussions that have been on-going in relation to the emerging local plan have been fully considered. Homes England now considers it an appropriate time to update the local communities on the feedback received on the bypass proposals, the response to feedback and what the next steps are which can be found in the:
Update Report on Homes England’s Bypass Proposals at Stadhampton/Chiselhampton and Cuxham
Please find more information on Homes England’s bypass proposals, public consultation, and the response to feedback, progress and next steps in the Update Report (June 2020) found here.
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