'They want to put a road through my house'

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

A Wigan farmer says he was ‘appalled’ to discover a planned road for the area runs through his detached house, conservatory and surrounding land.

Brian Lee says uncertainty over the route of the road through the south Hindley development has had a ‘profound impact’ on his family over the past 26 years.

The road would be built as part of plans to build 2,000 homes. The issue of the road re-emerged following Wigan council’s public consultation meetings in Hindley two weeks ago. “I am appalled that the route [of the proposed road] now unnecessarily bends through both my current property and my former farmland,” he said. “This has caused significant financial, emotional and practical hardship." Brian, 59, said his farm was the subject of a compulsory purchase order in 1998 ahead of the long-awaited proposed A5225 (Blue Rout) development which was designed to ease congestion between Wigan and Bolton. READ MORE: Businessmen who made over £750k by turning house into illegal car workshop fined £190k The road has been talked about since the end of the Second World War, but has never been built. “At the time, we complied with what we believed was a final and necessary measure for public infrastructure improvement,” Brian added. “However, over the following 26 years, the road route was altered multiple times, leaving our property in a state of indefinite planning blight.

This designation prevented us from expanding or developing our buildings, as we were repeatedly told that our land was ‘subject to development’. “It not only stifled the potential of our property but also made it exceedingly difficult to sell due to its uncertain status.