BARROW Gurney residents are up arms after a controversial application to redevelop the former hospital site was given the go-ahead.

BARROW Gurney residents are up arms after a controversial application to redevelop the former hospital site was given the go-ahead.

North Somerset Council's Planning and Regulatory Committee gave Del Piero the green light to build 24,000sq metres of offices, homes and leisure facilities on the site, after an independent survey found that the additional traffic it would create could be accommodated by the roads.

The council spent almost £5,000 on the survey after concerns were raised about the level of traffic it would generate.

Committee member Tim Marter said: "There were a number of concerns raised by ward councillors, but the application already had outline planning permission.

"The survey reflected, almost identically, the results of the survey done by North Somerset Council officers, which showed there wouldn't be a marked increase in the traffic as was alleged by some of the complainants.

"The plans also fall within the council's policies. To refuse it would have been suicide, because on appeal they would probably have won."

It is estimated that the development will lead to around 1,108 extra vehicle movements in the area per day, but North Somerset ward councillor for Barrow Gurney, Councillor Tom Collinson, believes this will cause traffic chaos in nearby villages.

He said: "This development could house up to 2,000 office workers, which is going to create a hell of a lot of traffic up and down Wild Country Lane.

"There are a lot of single lane sections, blind corners and a narrow railway bridge, which will mean tremendous congestion and queuing.

"If it's busy, we're worried drivers will go through Barrow Gurney instead. The main road through the village is very narrow and already heavily congested. It's going to cause mayhem."

The former Barrow Hospital, which was built in 1937, was sold last June and plans to turn it into a mixed development of offices, leisure facilities and houses, were announced.

Outline permission for the scheme was granted in 2005, which stated that the development could not exceed a total footprint of 11,000sq metres.