A “DANGEROUS” road forced councillors to defer making a decision on a new 124 home Royston development.

Royston Town Council’s planning control committee said it could not back or object to Fairview Homes Site A scheme on land south of the A505 until details of a proposed access road linking it with Old North Road were examined.

Cllr Martin Beaver said: “I welcome a new access road for this estate and I think it is about time, but they need to think about what traffic travels down the road and where it joins on to.

“At many times of the day it is gridlocked and dangerous, and I don’t see anything saying there will be traffic lights or any other measures being taken to make it any safer.

“I can’t support it and I think it is in the wrong place.

“One of these days there is going to be a big accident there and it is going to block the town.”

Members speculated that the new road would join the existing Tesco roundabout and suggestions were put forward to elongate the existing roundabout to improve safety, or to add an extra lane of traffic.

But all agreed the proposal was not acceptable.

Cllr F John Smith said: “I think it is a highly dangerous proposal being put before us and I suggest we are pretty strong about this.”

Members also urged Hertfordshire Highways to survey the traffic during rush hour before any decision was made, although council leader Bob Smith welcomed the proposed 20mph limit on the planned road.

Fairview Homes has recently had a 22-dwelling scheme, Site B, agreed in Royston, and has built the 59-home Site C estate.

A spokesman for Fairview Homes said: “We have submitted a planning application for Site A, which seeks to deliver the council’s vision for the area. A secondary application has been submitted to deliver a new access road linking Old North Road to the Burns Road estate. This proposed road has been audited by the Highways Authority.”