Ballyclare '˜crying out for bypass'

A number of Ballyclare residents have voiced concerns after the council's Planning Committee approved the construction of 117 new homes in the town.
Plans for a Ballyclare relief road have been on hold since developer Holm NI went out of business.Plans for a Ballyclare relief road have been on hold since developer Holm NI went out of business.
Plans for a Ballyclare relief road have been on hold since developer Holm NI went out of business.

The local authority last week gave the green light for 78 new properties on an area of land between Fairview Primary School and Grange Drive, and a separate development of 39 apartments at The Square.

Speaking to the Times, Ballyclare man Gary English said: “Currently the services in the town cannot cope with the population of the area as it is, so by increasing the number of people in the town, this will be an even bigger strain.

Residents are finding it difficult to get appointments at the health centre, so I don’t know how it will cope with hundreds of new people in the town.

“There is also a shortage of places at the nursery school, so adding more people to the town will only increase the problem.

“The town was promised a relief road and with traffic already congested, the roads will struggle to cope with an influx of more cars.”

One resident who wished to remain anonymous commented on the new housing issue.

They said: “Currently the situation is terrible on the roads and if more homes are built before the relief road is made, it will only get worse. In the mornings traffic is at a standstill on the main roads into the town centre. You can be sat on the Doagh Road for ages at peak times, as the majority of the town’s schools are there. If the new homes are built beside the Grange Estate before the relief road comes, then traffic will be even more congested.

“If you attempt to take another route through Doagh, the situation is not much better there as you can find yourself stuck in a traffic jam at the junction in the village.

“Cutting through Avondale Drive to try and avoid the tailbacks at The Square is also a problem, as you can be sat there for a while until someone lets you out. We were promised a relief road and until it comes, I don’t think any more homes should be built. The town is crying out for the bypass and our elected representatives need to push for it.”

Plans for the construction of a relief road between Templepatrick Road and Rashee Road were shelved after property developer Holm NI ceased trading. The 165-acre development site to the west of the town is now owned by the London-based Neptune Group.

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