I have the following comments about the Hockley Area Action Plan (AAP):

It doesn't seem to have been very well publicised, only exhibited in a very small area, again with limited publicity, and you would need to know about the AAP before looking for it on the RDC website. The person or persons who wrote the report seem to have only made a very limited number of visits to the area. One visit to the station car park in January.

In para 2.5.2. What does - "However, the scale of buildings here varies from one to three storeys which do not help to enclose the space: the result being that Spa Road feels wide, which may hinder pedestrian movement and thus undermine the natural retail circuit." mean?

Parking - para 2.6.4. Apart from 57 spaces in the library car park only 8 other car parking spaces are quoted - there are more spaces behind the Alldays store and the Somerfield car which do not appear to have been included.

The Rail Network - para 2.8.1. Trains run every 20 minutes to and from20London during the day but during the peak time (17.01 to 19.43) this rises to 7 trains arriving from London during 18.04-18.57 with the trains often being 12 coaches in length in the rush hour with a corresponding increase in the morning.

In paras 2.8.4 and 2.9.1 there are references to a taxi rank "located on Mount Crescent" and "the signalised junction of Mount Crescent/Spa Road/Greensward Lane". This would seem to refer to a road, which is some way away from Spa Road/Greensward Lane and I can only guess that Mount Crescent is actually Plumberow?

Para 3.4.3. The report seems to have a fixation on "a new square at the heart of the town centre". If there is housing around the "town square/green space" this traffic is again forced on to Spa Road, which increases the flow of cars along this already busy road. Please do not make Hockley into uniform rows of shops/flats, as it would lose what remains of the village atmosphere. The planning restriction height should be kept at the 2-storey level otherwise it would turn Spa Road into a windy canyon!

Para 3.4.5 The landscaped footway link appears to go through the church's garden.

Para 3.9.5 The20idea of traffic diversion hasn't really worked in Rayleigh so why should it work in Hockley? A lot of the traffic is through traffic so the idea of part-time signals at the Spa Hotel junction may improve things but can I suggest that the local schools create a lot of traffic and pupils should be encouraged to walk rather than expect their parents to drive them - at least in good weather. Woodlands Road traffic is not that heavy and I cannot understand why this needs to be restricted. Traffic is restricted by the road width under the railway bridge and also pedestrians are also restricted by the very narrow foothpath under this bridge - especially when the schools come out. Bramerton Road is also very near the Spa hotel junction and any shop/car park access would increase the chaotic traffic at this junction.

Looking at my comments they do seem to be negative rather than positive but it concerns me that so many people do not appear to have heard of this report and also that the tone seems to err on the idea of a town rather than a village atmosphere. A lot of people like Hockley because it is small scale - they all complain about the traffic but very few of them leave because of it. The centre of the village does need brightening up but it is only recently since the20sudden closure of Alldays that it has been losing heart - nowhere to buy their Lottery tickets. The Eldon Way industrial estate is moving towards more leisure-based businesses but the Foundry Estate has been enlarged and improved. Forcing these businesses to be moved out by the use of compulsory purchases seems wrong. The idea that there should be high-density housing around the town square would be out of proportion to the rest of the village. Also the 3-times the existing Somerfield size seems also too large for this area and again out of proportion.

I think that more time should be given for more consultation on this plan because of the lack of publicity and consultation time given to the people that knew of its existence. Hockley isn't perfect but there is a lot right with it.