WHAT the public needs and what it gets, is unclear at best.

Bovis homes, the developer of the Callington Road site, returned to West Devon Borough Council planning and licensing committee to inform it that the figures agreed in the S106 payment did not compute (no news there then).

So the committee agreed a £2-million reduction for the developer, as Bovis had stated the build cost had risen from £5-million to £8-million but the committee did add a caveat that should the building cost not reach £8-million the under spend would be passed to the council.

If the council gave you a price to carry out some work and six months later you said I can’t afford it now, what do you believe they would say?

The answer to the developer should have been tough; if you can’t build the houses within the agreement don’t build them. That money is to come off the railway budget; that is just over 15% of which Devon County Council will have to find, when it is cutting the overall budget by £110 -million. So, if we apply the 60% increase in building cost to the railway which is £26-million, that’s just over £15-million increase to build the railway, so do you think they will build 5.5 miles of railway for £41-million. Probably not, so you get 650 houses and no railway.

(Remember all the promises, short lived). Now the highways officers stand by their judgment that Calllington Road is ‘adequate’ with small works carried out, bearing in mind that a great deal of traffic would be elevated by people taking the train (their words not mine) but will the line ever be built? Traffic flow is a national set criteria and measured so.

If you based traffic movement in Bristol where you hope to move at 8mph that is ‘adequate’. However, Tavistock is not Bristol or any other place in the UK and the people find it unacceptable, when national figures are used make a point (I could use a few to highlight issues that Devon is beset).

Councillors need to engage with the residents of Tavistock to understand their frustrations and how to best work with them to overcome them. We have seen the traffic movement figures of what would happen if Butcher Park was granted planning (undisputed by anyone) and that is for 110 homes. What is going to happen when 650 are built? (I use that figure because of the topography of the site at Callington Road the developer will encounter a number of problems, making it non viable to build the full quota).

Callington Road is the first crossing from Cornwall into Devon (excluding Tamar Bridge at Saltash) all the traffic comes though Tavistock. With this development taking place and no link road, traffic will grind to a halt probably back to Cornwall. This is rush hour traffic not including holiday makers which Tavistock need to support its enterprises.

Remember that link road — information given at the Tavistock Town Council meeting last Tuesday from West Devon Council stated the developer did not remove the road from the plan, however, they did not make it perfectly clear who did, but stated that it would have taken a massive viaduct to cross a road and the river. Also it would have looked hideous and it’s a world heritage site.

This link road is more important to Tavistock than all the S106 money the affordable homes and the train line. (I believe in the railway returning to Tavistock based on its own merits not for the sake of 650 houses. If the line is to return which I most sincerely hope for, let it come from money set aside by Central Government and local government concentrate on local issues like a link road).

The S106 money was in the region of 18-million, this is the figure Bovis would have to pay Devon County Council and West Devon Borough Council.

The number of people that complained about Butcher Park had an impact; we need to start a campaign from all people in Tavistock to push the borough council to look at this link road again. Start lobbying your councillors; that’s why you elected them.

Councillor Colin Rogers

Tavistock North Ward

Tavistock Town Council