Traffic in Maidstone is “the rule rather than the exception” leaving the town at “breaking point.”

That’s the damning verdict from Helen Grant, MP for Maidstone and the Weald, who addressed a public inquiry into the borough’s Local Plan which is seeking to find room for 18,560 new homes in Maidstone by 2031.

At the Town Hall hearing yesterday (Thursday), Mrs Grant attacked Maidstone Borough Council for ignoring legitimate concerns about highways expressed by Kent County Council, parishes, community groups and local MPs and ploughing on with its housing policy.

The authority, Mrs Grant added, turned a blind eye to a traffic survey which it, alongside KCC, had commissioned and which showed without improvements 18,560 homes would increase congestion in the town by 40%, a forecast described as one of the worst in the country.

In January, MBC backed the Local Plan by 38 votes to 13.

The MP, who has served Maidstone since 2010, told inspector Robert Mellor residents had lost faith in the borough council’s local planning process, were unable to navigate the town without undue stress and anxiety and in many cases were considering moving away.

Mrs Grant identified 16 areas as the worst affected by traffic, including the town centre’s gyratory system, the A229 to the north, the Wheatsheaf junction to the south, Willington Street to the east and Hermitage Lane to the west. She added: “Then there’s our Medway bridges at East Farleigh, Teston and Yalding where jams often paralyse localities spilling back to the main trunk routes causing delays and sometimes chaos.”

Bus companies, she said, have had to push forward their collection times to the limit of what is possible due to delays on key routes.

Another major concern was pollution in the borough which already exceeded limits and is only going to get worse with new developments planned and no counter-measures in place.

She said: “I think MBC should be reminded the government has discretionary power to require responsible authorities to pay all, or part, of an infraction fine – which could be very substantial indeed.” Mrs Grant concluded by urging the council to lower its housing requirement and reduce emissions.

Last month Maidstone Borough Council felt the wrath of Mrs Grant’s Westminster colleague Helen Whately.

The MP for Faversham and Mid Kent, who represents half of the borough’s 26 wards, voiced similar concerns, telling Mr Mellor the councilMBC had failed to take account of constraints and could not meet its housing target without serious adverse effects on residents’ quality of life.

Mrs Whately went on to accuse the council of paying lip-service to residents’ views.
The inquiry was then adjourned until last week where the topic of conversation turned to designated rural service centres –;, such as Headcorn, Staplehurst, Harrietsham, Marden and Lenham.

Rural service centres are villages which serve the wider community and not just themselves.

Mr Mellor heard evidence from Dr Rebecca Driver, a planning consultant representing Headcorn Parish Council, who said the borough councilMBC had made a fundamental mistake in considering service centres to be as sustainable as urban areas.

She referenced research which showed urban wards averaged 18.69 jobs per hectare, while rural parishes came in at just 0.62, and said MBC had not followed the example of other council’s which had designated half the number of homes to settlements twice as large as Headcorn, which is in line for 423 houses.