I STRONGLY oppose the closure of Santridge Lane.

It would cause mayhem, with traffic taking the alternative route onto the already congested Stourbridge Road, a blackspot for accidents.

Three new housing estates now feed onto this road and the crossroads near to Meadows First School is a notoriously bad bottleneck where cars try to get onto Stourbridge Road. The build-up of vehicles and fumes would also increase the health hazard for parents with children and the other residents of the area; one of my daughters suffers from asthma caused by the considerable pollution presently coming from the main road.

With regard to concerns for safety of pedestrians, I propose that the council considers putting a pavement on the left side of the land facing Bewell Head. There is still some pavement outside the residence of number 45 but the rest of this has, over the years, disappeared. If this were to be continued for the length of the lane that would be helpful to pedestrians, particularly those with children, and the elderly going up and down the lane. Also I believe that the council should seriously consider traffic calming measures such as speed humps or rumble strips that seem to work very well in other areas.

Mr Basil Gough,

Resident of Santridge Lane.