Over three hundred local residents are seeking compensation from Cheshire East Council (CEC), claiming that the Alderley Edge Bypass has devalued their home.
Given the road opened in November 2010, the window for compensation claims will not close until 2017 so residents still have several years to make claims under the 1973 Land Compensation Act.
People can claim that their property has been reduced in value by physical factors, such as noise, artificial light, vibration and fumes, caused by the building of the new road.
Updated: In October CEC agreed to add a further £3m to the budget, because at that time claims were expected to exceed the budget by £2.4m, due to an increase in land costs and the actual areas of land acquired, as well as increased disturbance and an increase in the number of properties eligible to claim. (We are awaiting confirmation from CEC as to the total budget now set aside to settle all land related and compensation claims.)
Cheshire East are hoping to finance this additional £3 million by selling land and property in the area, which they purchased several years ago during the development of the bypass.
A Council spokesperson said: "We have so far received 305 claims for compensation relating to the construction of the Alderley Edge Bypass.
"All agents acting on behalf of residents have been informed that we are carrying out a thorough review of all claims to make sure they are dealt with fairly and in accordance with the Council's obligations.
"It is important that this process is not rushed and that we establish who is legitimately entitled to compensation. It is vital that we use tax payers' money in a responsible way, something we think the majority of Cheshire East residents would support us in.
"As soon as we have carried out the review we will deal with individual claims as quickly as possible."
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
In the spirit of using taxpayers' money in a fair & responsible way, I feel it would be appropriate for CEC to set clear parameters in terms of the duration of the review they plan to conduct and also to make public the qualifying criteria they plan to use as part of their assessment. I am sure that a similar majority of Cheshire East residents would consider this to be fair.
If you look at the picture above, when people bought their houses on Brook Lane, the planned road would have been much further away from the top part of Brook Lane if the route had been maintained across the golf course. It is arguable that the Council (Cheshire County Council) knew of the Land Compensation Act when they opted to avoid paying substantial damages to the golf course by putting the kink in the road to bring the road nearer to housing and thereby save the golf course. It is therefore arguable that the Council's calculation was that compensating the Residential properties would be cheaper than compensating the golf course.
It is further arguable that the kink also had the advantage of taking the by-pass further away from Ashford Road, Wilmslow (the closest houses in Wilmslow) thereby reducing the compensation to those houses.
I think your point is that people make choices and have to live with their choices; Parliament chose to allow compensation and Councils choose how best they can mitigate their overall compensation, but don't forget that many people along the route have been paid out many years ago by Cheshire County Council - even before work started. I am pretty sure that when a scheme receives Govt Funding, part of the funding is to cover the compensation due under the Govt Legislation - so it is not a surprise to the Council.
Wonder if people would change their tone if the bypass was built behind their own home.