Bury St Edmunds villagers are bracing themselves for a 43-mile diversion route - with calls for work on A134 Sicklesmere Road to be postponed

Angry villagers are bracing themselves for a 43-mile diversion route - with calls it should be postponed.

Residents living south of Bury St Edmunds, including little Great Whelnetham, Little Whelnetham, Stanningfield, Hawstead and Rougham are amongst those who fear their country roads will be used as a rat runs over the next two months.

An online petition has also been launched in a bid to halt the diversion plan - calling for an ‘immediate review’.

Hopkins Homes has arranged a series of weekend closures for the A134 Sicklesmere Road between February 17 and May 5. Traffic light management is also planned for the road during the week.

The diversion route, arranged with Suffolk County Council, is to allow the developer to build a new roundabout on the A134 as part of its Abbots Vale estate development.

The route takes motorists from the south of Bury as far as Long Melford, through Clare and Haverhill, and back again.

Peter Royce, chairman of Great Whelnetham and Little Whelnetham Parish Council, said: “People are just very frustrated and angry.

“The construction plan and diversion has been very poorly thought out and they are living in cloud cuckoo-land if they think people will use the diversion. It’s over an hour for a 10 minute journey, with possible roadworks along the way.

“At weekends, around 16,000 vehicles travel along Sicklesmere Road.

“Many may decide to avoid the town altogether, leading to a huge loss of trade. It will also cause huge problems for people getting to work, let alone emergency vehicles.

“If the developers care about the community, it should be postponed until it can be done in a more expedient manner and not to the detriment of so many people.”

“They have basically isolated people on the southern side of Bury from coming into town.

“If people are determined, they will use rural routes, which are both badly maintained and unsuitable.”

On Wednesday, Hopkins Homes and Suffolk County Council made a last minute u-turn by agreeing Rushbrooke Lane and Low Green should become ‘access only’ during the course of the work.

It followed a backlash from residents, worried about the roads being used as rat runs, at a community meeting arranged by Hopkins Homes, last week.

Suffolk county councillor, Richard Rout, said: “I’m pleased that they have listened. I’m disappointed that we had to really push for this. It should have been done from the outset.”

Rougham parish councillor, Sara Mildmay-White, who is also district councillor for several of the affected villages, said: “Neither Hopkins Homes nor Suffolk Highways have been in touch with the parish council or myself with any information directly. This is disgraceful.

“Rougham has already seen an enormous increase in the amount of traffic with all the developments in Thurston. I fear this will only add to the problem, even during the week.

“People will be looking for quick ways through. Rat-running will be inevitable and must be closely monitored.”

Concerns have also been raised by residents in Nowton Road.

Henry Hopking, chairman of Nowton Parish Council, said: “Whilst I agree it is great Rushbrooke Lane and Low Green are closed to through traffic, this perhaps will only concentrate traffic elsewhere.

“I see the question as how risk is minimised. I have deep concerns as to the potential impact of ambulance and fire services travelling to and from the southern villages, not just Nowton.”

Hopkins Homes say the Sicklesmere Road works are an ‘essential part of the Abbots Vale development’, aimed at improving traffic flow and safety for ‘the growing community’.

The developer said: “We are committed to working with and supporting the local community.

“We understand that these essential roadworks will cause some disruption, and we are committed to working closely with Suffolk Highways to minimise this as much as possible.

“We will closely monitor the impact of these changes from the start of the works.”

The developer added: “A diversion route will be clearly signposted whilst the road closure is in place and traffic flows will be continuously monitored.

“If necessary, additional measures will be reviewed.”

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