Westwood Lane

Westwood Lane is classified as a C Class road (C16) and is unsuitable for the volume of traffic that the proposed development would generate and additional traffic going to and from the school. The Lane is a rural, residential road, with a 30mph speed limit along the southern residential part of the road up to the railway bridge, and a 40mph limit up to the northern end of the road along which there are no street lights.

The Lane is a busy commuter route for cars, commercial vehicles, lorries, multi-axle heavy goods vehicles and articulated lorries travelling between the A323 Guildford to Aldershot Road and the A3 and A31. Many of these vehicles fail to adhere to the speed limits. The street lighting is poor and there is no street lighting on the long 40mph stretch of the road.

From Flexford Road (an unclassified road) at the southern end of Westwood Lane to the railway bridge is a hill down which vehicles speed. The road under the railway bridge is a single track road on a deceptive double bend, with priority given to vehicles travelling south. There is a 14’ 3” height restriction on the bridge which means that a double decker bus would not be able to pass under (which would considerably restrict being able to bring pupils to and from the school). Immediately on the southern side of the bridge travelling north, on the nearside, is a road exit at Beech Lane.

Vehicles turning left at this point under the bridge travelling north cannot be seen by vehicles that have priority travelling south, and a greater volume of traffic will only increase the inherent dangers at this bridge. This bridge would be hazardous for cyclists travelling to and from the school, and a congestion point for the increased traffic that an 1,100 housing development would bring.

At the northern end of the Lane is the junction with the A323 Guildford to Aldershot Road. This is an extremely dangerous junction with traffic from Westwood Lane attempting to turn both ways onto the busy A323, while traffic from the A323 is attempting to turn into Westwood Lane. This junction is already a ‘bottle neck’ at busy times of the day. There is the added danger that only a few yards to the west is School Lane, along which Wyke Primary school is located. There is a nearby crossing point ‘island’ on the A323 which is hazardous for pupils and their parent to use and cars have already mounted this island demolishing the street sign.

Many parents who drop off and meet their children park alongside the churchyard in Westwood Lane and negotiate this busy crossing point ‘island’ to get to School Lane. This crossing point will become even more dangerous if an additional form of entry is added to the school, and there is increased traffic entering and exiting Westwood Lane. The footpath is on both sides of Westwood Lane as far north as the railway bridge but from there to the northern end of the road is only on the east side.