THE proposed North Site development has resulted in suggested plans for road and traffic calming schemes. It is noteworthy that Upper Howsell Road, already a dangerous cut through race track, is apparently to receive no alterations at all, yet this would obviously bear a heavy load of the envisaged 25 per cent to 36 per cent increased traffic in this area.

The proposal from Coun Hall-Jones and others (entirely outside of the remit of all of the above plans) is the building of a so-called relief road connecting the traffic island at the end of Townsend Way with Leigh Sinton Road.

I agree with the excellent letter from the Jeavons (Your Letters, November 19) that not only would this road wreak havoc on the countryside area designated as strategic gap, it would eventually lead to infill housing far in excess of the proposed development. The resulting traffic chaos for the whole of the Link area can easily be envisaged.

Furthermore, it would have little or no effect on the management of traffic from North Site. Vehicles heading north would meet increased traffic queues through Newland and Powick to the M5, a situation partially mitigated by the proposed re-routing signs from the motorway to Malvern and the use of the existing link roads.

Most of us from our end of the Link have long ago given up any hope of travelling north through the Link. Helpful though the Leigh Sinton plan would be, there is already a huge traffic problem from Powick to the M5. Increased traffic flows could only make the congestion worse as everyone is channelled onto the single and inadequate link road from Powick.

The question we are left with is why the North Site proposal should be accepted at all?

Consensus at recent meetings centred around the undoubted congestion to be caused in an area which has already seen every available space used for housing without any alterations to roads (Yates Hay and Upper Howsell for example).

The proposers of the link road are creating a red herring, which has to do with moving the chaos from one area to another. Surely we can all see that no-one living in the Link area actually wants further development.

I propose a re-design for North Site which, along the lines of the visionary development of Greenham Common, could become a nature reserve or parkland. If there absolutely has to be a building (and we should go on challenging this), why not a really good leisure centre along the lines of Pershore with a nature reserve surrounding it?

Let's keep Malvern on the map as a visionary, forward looking area of outstanding beauty which challenges the creation of satellite villages as in Worcester. Howsell villages? No thank you!

MICHAEL PEGG, Bronsil Drive, Malvern.