Highways

Three accidents over the summer at the Potten End crossroads (the junction of The Common, Water End Road, Church Road and the Green) have once again focused attention on the safety of this junction. Interestingly the statistics suggest that most accidents involve vehicles travelling north along The Green and east along The Common – in other words where the sight-line is just about perfect. Longer term we hope the proposed raised platform will help, but County Cllr Smith-Wright has asked Highways what can be done to improve its safety in the short-term.

The road closure outside 76 and 78 Hempstead Lane and the extensive use of the field to the side of 78 are all connected with the completion of the drainage works which were halted after the tragic on-site death of one of the contractors two years ago. County Cllr Smith-Wight is trying to see whether it will be possible to partially open the road at some stage but at the moment that seems unlikely; not surprisingly because of the history everything is being done by the book. It’s anticipated that the road will be closed at least until the end of October.

We managed to get the proposed closure of Little Heath Lane near the junction with Hempstead Lane postponed because of the closure of Hempstead Lane.

Open Spaces

There’s a provisional request that the council consider the installation of a water fountain on the recreation ground near the play equipment; your views would be welcome.

Unfortunately it’s been necessary to close the bucket swing and some of the climbing frame on the recreation ground because potential problems were identified during a recent inspection. We’re trying to get this rectified as soon as possible.

Planning

For those of you interested in the impact of changes in planning law, outline planning permission for three self/custom built dwellings in what is currently the grounds of Mollcroft (the last house on the north side of Hempstead Lane going toward Hemel has been granted. The importance of this decision is that what we previously considered as green belt between Potten End and Hemel could now be considered to be grey belt and available for development.

Over the summer the council supported applications from Meads, Frithsden Copse  (26/01623/FHA), the Village Hall (26/01716/TCA) and Moonfleet, Frithsden Copse (26/01673/FHA).

At the meeting on Thursday the Council will consider:

25/01742/MOA – Polehanger Lane development. This is the proposal to build 700 dwellings, a care home, children’s home and school on the edge of Hemel, effectively reducing the gap between Hemel and Potten End by 50%. In previous iterations the Parish Council has successfully challenged the developers assumption that there will be minimal impact on vehicle flows through Potten End but in the Parish Council’s view the revised figures still underplay the likely impact which the council believes could result in a 30% increase in traffic through the village.

26/01881/FUL– Bowling Club, Hempstead Lane – construction of equipment shed

26/01917/TCA– The Vicarage, Church Road – Leyland cypress to reduce height by 6m

The parish council is increasingly concerned about the level of dog fouling in the parish.  It has been particularly bad on Potten End Old Green recently and new signs have been placed in an attempt to discourage it.  Dog owners are reminded that bagged dog excrement can be placed in any litter bit – not only in dedicated dog litter bins.  Please do all you can to keep our parish clean and healthy – especially in areas in which children play.

It’s that time of year when potholes often appear in roads in and around our parish.  Luckily never as bad as the one in the photo!  If you see a pothole please report it to Hertfordshire County Council.  The process is really simple and it’s easy to see if it has already been reported.  You can find a link on our useful links page or do so directly from here.  The same link can be used to report fallen trees, street lights not working and problems with pavements.

At it’s meeting  on 19 September, the Council received a presentation from Emily Smith and Cissy Hardy from the National Trust about it’s woodland management plans in Ashridge.

Continue reading “Frithsden Copse – restoration of ancient woodland”

The Parish Council is publishing its draft response to Hertfordshire Highways Speed Management Strategy here. Our main concerns are:

• the lack of community involvement and transparency in decision making which directly relates to the issue we have with the speed limit along The Common.
  
• the lack of focus on the issues which impact rural areas

If you have any comments on the response please contact the Clerk.

Individuals may also respond to the strategy and on the basis that the more people who comment the better, please feel free to use this draft as the basis of your response in so far as it reflects your views. The deadline for comments is the 16th September 2020.

The strategy and the form on which responses must be submitted may be found here.

The Speed Management Strategy forms a key role in delivering Herts Local Transport Plan 4 which may be found here.