SIR,

I would like to express my deep concern about the proposal to use the Burgage as an access road to the new development at the old Dixton Clinic.

I am extremely worried about the proposal because I am the parent of two secondary school children who live just three minutes away from Monmouth Comprehensive.

There is already a huge volume of traffic on this road early in the morning.

The children that walk to school presently struggle to safely negotiate the heavy traffic that consists of parents dropping their children off, teachers and other staff going to work at the school and the workers and visitors accessing the leisure centre.

And this does not included the people who already live in this vicinity and their attempts to get out to the traffic jams that already exist on St James Square.

Much of this traffic consists of people who are in a rush, who are becoming impatient and who may move forward at the exact time that some young child decides it is safe to cross.

All in all, this is extremely dangerous as children negotiate parked cars, large coaches dropping children off and traffic jams, all of which will surely be made worse if the new occupiers of this development add to this volume of traffic.

And this is supposed to be a safe route to school?

I already see parents who make risky decisions in their haste to drop their children off and carry on to their workplace.

It really is a hazardous juggling act that children have to manage everyday.

For some of the youngest children this is the first time they will have had to cross a busy road on their own and it only takes one silly mistake or one child late for registration, and a dreadful accident will happen.

Furthermore, if an accident were to happen – how on earth would an ambulance manage to attend?

I ask that Monmouthshire County Council reconsiders its decision.

I have not been included in any consultation – either as a local resident who lives so close to the proposed development or as the parent of children who use this route every day of the working week.

I also call on Monmouth Comprehensive School to challenge this decision that will affect their safe route to school.

C M P Moore

(Monmouth)