I would like to add my voice to the general protest about the development of the sports fields at the Arden tennis Club. I moved to Solihull just over three years ago attracted by the area, the schools, the supposedly reduced traffic compared to Birmingham etc. I am also impressed by the commitment of the borough to try to keep some semblance of character to the town - something I think Birmingham has done very poorly by knocking down historic or characterful buildings everywhere and letting anything get built (see the new eyesore tower blocks near the old McLaren building as an example).

For me Sharmans Cross Road is very much at the tipping point between being a pleasant place to live and a place that is just a thoroughfare. The traffic is already an absolute nightmare and is clearly getting worse. Traffic from Blossomfield Road typically goes up to around 56/58 Sharmans Cross Road in one direction and from the Junior School all the way to the Sharmans Cross roundabout in the other. Two days ago there was a major collision on the road just outside the Arden Tennis Club and this type of driving is only getting worse because of the number of cars combined with the impatience of drivers as they get frustrated and begin to cut corners. The traffic around my son's school (Blossomfield) is so bad that drivers now regularly drive on the pavement to get past.

And now we are facing another request to develop the Rugby fields and generate yet more traffic. I have to say if this goes ahead it will send a very clear signal on the direction and priorities of the borough which is revenue first, people second. I'd have to seriously consider moving out simply because the roads would be becoming so dangerous I dread to think of 18 months from now when my son has to cross the road to Sharmans Cross Junior; crossing a busy roads with totally inadequate parking, impatient drivers and going to a school which would need to have yet another intake added.