RESIDENTS on a new housing estate at Winkleigh are angered this week at the blocking off of a path which has been closed by a developer. The path, which is at the end of the Elm?s Meadow estate, is a regular short cut for residents, including mothers escorting their children to a nearby nursery and the elderly, to take them to the village. Bob and Linda Smith, who live at Elm?s Meadows, say that its closure means some people are being forced to walk more than 300 yards out of the estate?s main entrance and use an unpaved track out on the main road, instead of simply using the short cut. Mr Smith said that route is highly dangerous ? not just because of the uneven surface, but also because of the danger from the busy traffic on the main Okehampton to Winkleigh road. Redrow Homes, which has built more than 50 homes on the estate, wrote to residents asking them not to use the footpath leading from the construction site into the village. ?The path is in fact closed to the public at present,? the letter informed the Smiths, ?and should not be used until further notice. ?For reasons of health and safety I would ask you to take an alternative route until the path has been officially opened.? Mr Smith, 70, who is retired, said that when he contacted Redrow, they told him they would have to speak to the council. The path entrance is on a bank and Mr Smith said residents would like to see access returned, with some steps or a ramp installed. Mr Smith, who moved into the new estate with his wife Linda, 73, in March, said: ?Every time we use the existing path we have cars and lorries speeding past, it has become very dangerous. ?They said it was for reasons of health and safety they had to close the footpath into the village ? but the one we use now is an accident ready to happen.? A spokesman for Redrow said that while he understood the concern of the residents, the developers were not obliged to construct a link to the path. Adrian Youngman, an area construction manager for Redrow, said: ?It is Devon County Council?s obligation to link the path up. ?The reason that we have closed the footpath is to stop people going down the bank for their own safety, until the link is done.? ?We have no rights on that piece of land,? he added. But a Devon County Council spokesman said: ?Devon County Council has sought to reach a solution to this problem with Redrow Homes by the provision of a ramp, prior to the estate being occupied but the developer has refused to co-operate. ?Redrow Homes has not yet satisfied the county council that the road network serving the dwellings is of a suitable standard to allow the homes to be occupied. ?Redrow Homes has stated at every stage of the planning process that the footway would provide a link to the village and the county council is disappointed that this has not been provided.?