Traders in New Quay have made a last-ditch effort to get plans for a housing development on a car park rejected.

The plans to build 30 affordable homes on a popular car park in the town go before planners on Wednesday and have been recommended for approval.

The scheme would however lead to the loss of more than 200 car parking spaces with no alternative plan.

The scheme has drawn widespread opposition from the local community with more than 2,500 people signing a petition and the town council stating its opposition to the plans.

Traders in the town have commissioned an independent traffic expert to produce a report, which says the housing scheme has serious flaws and would ‘create a situation detrimental to highway safety’.

The independent transport assessment was prepared by KvW Highways (Karl von Weber) - a Chartered Engineer with over 40 years of experience and raises several issues with the site layout, including non- compliant access junctions, inadequate parking bay sizes, lack of turning areas, and dangerous reversing manoeuvres.

The report also says the scheme provides no safe pedestrian routes, no tactile paving, and no disabled parking provision falling short of minimum standards required by the Ceredigion Highway Design Guide and inclusive mobility guidance, adding: “The car park layout will create a situation detrimental to highway safety with conflict between vulnerable road users and vehicles.”

Releasing the report and submitting it to planners, New Quay Traders are calling on Ceredigion County Council to reject the application until a full assessment of transport, ecology and economic impact is provided.

They are also calling on the applicant, Barcud, to to review and respond to the KvW Highways report in full and call for an immediate reopening of the upper car park, with community support if needed for basic maintenance.

The application is recommended for approval at the 14 May meeting.

An officer report says claims by opponents to the scheme that the loss of parking is being “disregarded” and “dismissed” is refuted by the authority.

“To claim that the viability and vitality of the town as a whole will ‘plainly’ be undermined is conjecture,” the council documents say.

“The LPA would contest that the proposed development presents significant year-around economic benefits to the local economy with the addition of up to 98 permanent residents into the heart of the town – New Quay being the settlement with the highest number of second homes and residences used as short-term lets across the whole of Ceredigion.”