Rushey Way in Lower Earley could get even busier with traffic if a proposed new street gets approval, residents have said.

Councillors are set to debate plans to build a new street just off the busy highway, with officers recommending that they approve it next week.

But residents of nearby streets have objected, complaining that the new street will bring congestion and a loss of privacy. They also say the site is too small for the nine houses proposed, and that their height – three storeys – is out of keeping with the rest of the area.

The plans, submitted by Mrs C. Burrows, are for a small cul-de-sac on a site currently occupied by a large house known as Crockers, opposite Tiptree Close.

Some 47 neighbours objected to the plans when they were first submitted to Wokingham Borough Council in June 2022.

A report by planning agent Daniel Thompson argued that the proposed houses on the site would be packed less densely than those on surrounding streets.

And the applicants cut the number of proposed houses on the site from ten to nine in a revised plan submitted to the council in March this year.

But 15 residents have still filed formal objections to the plans since then. Stuart Hall of Wickford Way said: “Adding nine houses in what is less than an acre of land is just not viable.

“In a society where most houses have two cars, in this proposal there would not be enough space for nine dwellings and up to 18 (or more) cars. The proposal to build three-storey houses is not in keeping with the current setting.”

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Other objections said the new access road to the street could present a hazard to pedestrians, that three-story buildings would overlook houses on neighbouring Beighton Close, and that works would damage or remove hedgerows and protected trees.

But officers are recommending that councillors approve the new street at a planning committee meeting next Wednesday, 14 June.

Officers’ report to the committee says a new small cul-de-sac “is considered to be in keeping” with the surrounding area. And it says the number of new houses is “modest” and “would not represent an overdevelopment of the site.”

It also says the number of trees removed “would result in minimal harm to the urban character and appearance of the site.”

If councillors accept the recommendations, developers will still need to submit further plans, including for parking, vehicle access and tree protection, before work could start.

The plans are available to view and comment on at the planning section of Wokingham Borough Council’s website, using application number 221797.