Residents have reported a large reduction in the number of Chalkpit quarry lorries in recent days. They are concerned that the reduction appears to coincide with a traffic survey being carried out near the quarry in Chalkpit Lane which we understand started on Monday, 16 April. They are worried that any data from the survey will be inaccurate and misleading.
A Surrey County Council planning officer this morning confirmed to OLRG that it has not carried out the survey.
The lull follows many months when there has been an excessive number of HGVs using the quarry.
Residents have now been waiting 5 years and 10 months for the County Council to make a decision on the review of planning controls on the quarry.
SCC is still in correspondence over the review with the quarry operator, Southern Gravel. It has now released to OLRG some latest correspondence with Southern Gravel's lawyers. If you would be interested in reading this, please get in touch by emailing oxted.residents@btinternet.com
The planning officer said that SCC hoped to make a decision on the review in June but that it might be delayed again.
It's hoped that the review will at last bring in a safe and reasonable daily limit on the number of lorries.
However, in June last year, the quarry operator Southern Gravel published a Transport Statement which said that SCC was proposing a daily limit of 150 movements a day (75 in and 75 out).
This high number sparked worries that SCC is caving in to pressure from Southern Gravel. Dozens of residents wrote in to SCC making clear their fears that someone will be badly injured or killed if a daily limit of 150 HGV movements is allowed.
OLRG took legal advice and sent in a submission explaining, among other things, why the traffic figures provided in the Transport Statement are inadequate.
At the moment, the quarry is operating under a 1997 planning permission which has no daily limit on HGV numbers.
