A planning application to build up to 630 homes in Thornbury has been described as detrimental, ill-conceived, and inaccurate.

Thornbury Town Council has objected to plans by Barwood Development Securities and the North West Thornbury Consortium to build the houses at Park Farm, Butt Lane.

The planning application says the development would address the “widely recognised and accepted housing crisis in the West of England” but councillors have suggested the town cannot cope with the number of houses proposed.

The objection raised a number of concerns, largely focusing on the infrastructure it said is not in place.

It said the development would put “very large numbers of cars” onto the junctions of

Gloucester Road and Grovesend Road with the A38 at peak times.

There are plans to create pedestrian, cycle and bus links but these were described as inadequate in the council’s response.

The lack of employment opportunities in the town was also cited as likely to increase pressure on the road.

There were also worries that this increase in traffic would encourage more use of unsuitable rural roads, turning them into rat runs.

Other concerns raised included losing the ‘cohesive nature of the community’ due to rapid population increase.

The area allocated for community use was described as being too small for the facilities needed by the number of new residents generated by the development.

It was also pointed out the South Gloucestershire Council is now able to demonstrate a 5-year land supply, something the developer stated it could not do in the planning application.

Councillors slammed the inaccuracies in the assessment of the town’s facilities, most notably the assertion that there is still a hospital in the town.

They were in unanimous agreement when discussing the application at a meeting of the town’s development committee last Tuesday, with one describing the plans as ‘madness’.

A spokeswoman for Barwood Homes said: “We recognise that local communities frequently have concerns over how development proposals will affect them and often concerns are understandably focused on potential traffic, flooding and ecology impacts.

“We held a consultation event in Thornbury last year and have considered very carefully the views of the local community.

“Barwood Land is an experienced and conscientious promoter and we go to great lengths to ensure that all of the planning applications we submit are robust and evidence-based.

“We ensure that the proposals adequately address these matters from the outset and that appropriate mitigation measures are incorporated into the development, and a full Environmental Impact Assessment has been undertaken, to ensure that any remaining impacts will be addressed.

“The planning application has been prepared so it can be independently tested and to demonstrate that the site is suitable and deliverable so that if South Gloucestershire Council is required to identify additional land for housing development through the Joint Spatial Plan (JSP), it could be brought forward promptly."