Plans for almost 500 homes and a new relief road to the west of Bury St Edmunds have been met with criticism from neighbours over noise, traffic and loss of wildlife. 

Applicant Pigeon (Bury West) Limited first submitted proposals for 485 homes on land off Newmarket Road in 2019, but concerns were raised around the access roads, which included roundabout access onto Newmarket Road and a part relief road onto Fornham Lane, as well as the green buffer and the total number of homes included.

In a new application before West Suffolk Council, the applicant is once again seeking permission for up to 485 two and three storey homes of various sizes and tenures, but has made changes to the planned relief road including roundabout site access on Newmarket Road and Westley Road, as well as a new priority junction from the relief road onto Hill Road. 

But some neighbours on the nearby Westley Estate are unhappy with the plans, citing noise and traffic concerns, as well as worries for wildlife on the currently disused plot.

One Greene Road resident said in a statement of objection submitted to West Suffolk Council: "One of the joys of the Westley Estate is having the wonderful field to walk through, a peaceful area to get away to when I am struggling with my mental health.

"I don't believe that destruction of even more natural land is the best decision to be made here when there are various plots of lands in Bury that are already built up and falling apart, abandoned."

Another resident, who lives in Bennett Avenue, said: "The proposed roundabout is extremely close to the existing very busy junction of Newmarket Road, Oliver Road and Bennett Avenue along with the access to the very popular Shell petrol station.

"It will cause traffic chaos in its current proposed format, even more so when there are special events on in the town," they added. 

The scheme is on land allocated for residential development.