RESIDENTS in Croesyceiliog have raised concerns over plans to develop the land at Craig Y Felin, just off the A4042.

The land – known locally as the Circus Fields – has been included as a proposed site for development in Torfaen council’s Replacement Local Development Plan (2018-2033), published last year.

The proposal is for a mixed use development of the greenfield site, with a mixture of housing and industrial units.

One Croesyceiliog resident, Jane Rees-Parfitt, said any development would make the surrounding areas almost impassable during rush hours – with the A4042 already struggling to cope in pre-Covid times with the volume of traffic.

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“There have been people out counting the traffic going through there,” she said. “But we’re in lockdown and there is hardly anyone on the roads.

“At the busiest times on the A4042 it can take up to two hours to get from A to B.

“If they are going to be building this, you’ll have more and more people using Chapel Lane as a through road. That’s a single lane and it can get increasingly congested. It’s a bottleneck, especially at the railway bridge.

“We have seen the road at the Hafodyrynys through road become the most polluted area outside London, and we don’t want to see that happening again here.”

Ms Rees-Parfitt also raised environmental concerns about any development.

“The area is prone to flooding there,” she said. “Down the bottom of the Circus Fields especially after there would be no trees or other defences.

“We are concerned about natural habitats and the bushes and trees.

“During lockdown we’ve all grown a new appreciation for our local area. That woodland is so precious.

“It looks like Torfaen is becoming a city. All the towns are being mulched together.

“Everyone had their community shops, their pubs, their doctor’s surgeries. What’s going to be happening there? Are they going to have their amenities there or are they going to have to get in their car and drive into Croesy?”

Ms Rees-Parfitt added she was concerned the plans had not been advertised widely enough, especially with the fact everyone has been asked to stay at home for much of the last year.

Another resident, Hannah Bateman, who set up a petition to prevent the construction of houses on Craig Y Felin fields, described the site as “One of the few remaining open green spaces in Cwmbran.”

“This is incredibly important given the impact local lockdowns are currently having on mental health,” she said.

She added the development would lead to an increased risk of flooding, “which is already an issue in the area.”

She also raised concerns over the increase in traffic the new homes would bring.

“Adding more traffic will be an absolute death sentence to the health of our community,” she said.

The petition has, at the time of writing, gathered more than 1,200 signatures.

A council spokesperson said: "The council is currently consulting on the Torfaen Replacement Local Development Plan (RLDP) which will guide the use of land in the borough until 2033.

"The consultation has been ongoing since November 2020 and for strategic sites such as Craig Y Felin, as well council publicity, individual letters were sent to everyone in close proximity to the site and notices were placed on and around the site.

"Issues relating to the potential development of the site are part of the consultation and it is anticipated that a virtual public meeting will be held in relation to this site in the near future.

"Due to the Covid 19 pandemic the consultation is expected to be extended further than the existing closing date which is March 26."