LIKE everyone in Trowbridge I am pleased to see the old Peter Black factory being demolished. It was an awful eyesore. If true, the prospect of both Marks and Spencer, along with a Toby Inn carvery coming to Trowbridge is very encouraging for Trowbridge to develop and hence offer more.

I don't want to appear to be a killjoy, but I am surprised that neither of these well known organisations did not consider the old Knee's shop in the central Trowbridge location. Was it not big enough for them? There has to be the question that at present in Trowbridge there are currently 12 shops not in use. As we all know one in 'Trowbridge-gate' has never been occupied. Still as I say both M&S and Toby are famous outlets. Unfortunately just because the awful Peter Black factory was an awful eyesore does not mean that it makes good business sense and therefore it should become in effect another retail park. This reasoning must also apply to the empty and part demolished Bowyers site. But the Bowyers site has listed buildings and are they an obstacle in the way of a new replacement developer after Morrisons pulled out? To me they are another eyesore.

But my major concern is one concerned with traffic entering and to the point exiting this new development site at Peter Black. Both customer and delivery vehicle traffic entering from County Way is perhaps less likely to cause additional traffic queues on County Way than exiting it. Because surely traffic, unless my understanding is incorrect, will exit onto County Way next to the pedestrian foot bridge. The extra customer and delivery traffic joining County Way is bound to cause further congestion especially the traffic at the existing traffic lights for the Tesco supermarket entrance.

What must be remembered is that County Way already has three sets of traffic lights including a pedestrian crossing and of course it is a through road, in that it is part of the A361 going through Trowbridge. If I am not mistaken this new exit point onto County Way will be in the same position as for the old Peter Black factory site exit. As traffic volumes are bound to continue to increase surely any local motorist must be very concerned with this imminent further traffic congestion on County Way. Because if not immediately upon the initial opening of this new retail site more traffic lights will have to be placed on County Way. Surely to say an impending traffic nightmare is not alarmist. But not to be too cynical have the highway planners not considered this or perhaps only the extra commercial business rates? I wonder.

But is there not a better solution to this very probable extra traffic congestion, although if not a considerably better option? My proposal would allow only delivery or trade traffic onto County Way to exit approximately just before the existing pedestrian bridge, as per the old original exit I assume. A new single carriage way bridge to be constructed for public consumer traffic would enable this traffic to exit this new development over the River Biss so as to exit this site into St Stephens Place, past the civic centre and entrances of the multi-storey and Odeon cinema car park entrances and then Castle Street.

Obviously traffic speed would have to be rigorously controlled and enforced to I would say to no more than 15 mph maximum by multiple traffic calming measures.

If I was on the highways planning committee I would not support what if I understand correctly is the proposed traffic arrangement exit onto County Way for this new development. It may have been good enough for the traffic conditions in 2002 when Peter Black closed but not now. There needs to be two separate exits for a much better traffic management from this new retail site.

P. Geering Lydiard Way Trowbridge