A RESIDENTS' group has warned that traffic problems caused by the overdevelopment of south Farnham are being ignored by highway officials. Residents have grouped together to try and fight off a growing number of applications from developers wanting to convert family homes in south Farnham into flats and apartments. Abbots Ride resident Sophie Lovell is co- ordinating the campaign and organised a meeting last week to discuss the problem which was attended by more than 100 people. The protesters say the developments are threatening to destroy the character of the area and will put a strain on the local infrastructure. They have criticised Surrey County Council's highways department for failing to recognise the traffic implications of having more people and cars in the area. The planning authority, Waverley Borough Council, cannot refuse a planning application on highway grounds unless Surrey County Council has raised objections. Sophie Lovell said: "We wanted to bring this out in the open and show people that they don't have to accept this situation and that there are ways in which we can stand against these developers. "The number of people at the meeting clearly shows that this is a very real issue that people are extremely concerned about. "One of the points we talked about was the disappointment with the way in which the highway's department has allowed some of these applications to go through without comment. "It seems obvious that if you allow family homes to be turned into multiple occupation dwellings it will inevitably lead to more vehicles on the roads. "It is hard to understand, therefore, why the county council seldom seems to raise objections when there are very clear highway implications arising from the applications." Surrey County Council has a team of officers in transportation development control who are based at County Hall and provide the highways department with advice and recommendations on all planning applications. A spokeswoman for Surrey County Council said: "We have no control over whether planning applications are given approval - that's for Waverley to decide. We can only give our recommendations. "We don't just rubber stamp things and a great deal of work goes into looking at each specific case and examining the transport issues involved. "Safety obviously is a major concern but it's not the only factor we take into consideration. We also look at the bigger picture and take a view on the general effects of increased traffic." There are currently planning applications to convert two houses in Waverley Lane into apartments, one of which has already been granted on appeal.
