Planning permission is being sought for the first stage of a new cycle route connecting Yelverton and Princetown.

Devon County Council is developing a county wide network of cycle routes and is now seeking permission for the first off-road section across fields between Southella Road in Yelverton to Lake Lane in Burrator. A new access point will be built at the corner of Southella Road.

A safe route from Yelverton to Dousland has long been Devon County Council policy for several years and is included in the current Local Transport Plan.

In a planning statement submitted by Devon County Council it reported that the proposed route would better connect Yelverton and Princetown with a ‘spectacular off-road path, bringing a range of benefits’.

‘The Princetown Railway Path forms part of the National Cycle Network. Most of the route has been in place for some years and the missing bridge over the Princetown Road was recently replaced under the Granite and Gears programme.

‘Between Dousland and Yelverton many cyclists use the main Princetown Road which is not an attractive environment for cycling. The current proposal is designed to avoid this main road and help achieve a safe route to Princetown.’

The statement also said that the path would provide a range of benefits for cyclists, horse riders and walkers alike but that no new car parking was to be provided and that visitors choosing to arrive by car should use existing provision at Yelverton or Burrator reservoir.

Feedback received by the planning authority — Dartmoor National Park — to the application from local residents has been a mixture of for and against, with main concerns relating to increase to parking in the area.

Against the proposal was a couple from Yelverton who were ‘dismayed’ at the ‘lack of consideration’ for nearby residents.

‘It is alarming that the proposal has no provision for pedestrian safety, increased traffic or the need for extra car parking,’ they said.

‘Our major concern is that Midella Road will certainly become clogged up with parked cars because it is the most convenient place to park for people using this part of the cycle track.’

One woman in support of the application said: ‘We cyclists need to be separated from cars as much as possible and this route would be safer for motorists and cyclists. It’s about time we had more off road routes. If Exeter can do it why can’t we?’

The proposed link is in the parish of Buckland Monachorum, and its parish council is objecting to the planning permission.

In a statement, the parish council said: ‘The parish council objects to this application on the grounds that it fails to articulate how the cycle path will transit from the current terminal at St Paul’s Church Car Park to the entrance of Westella Road.We wish to see the whole scheme before considering pieces of it.’

It is understood that Dartmoor National Park will make a decision on whether to give planning permission or not to this scheme in November.

Full details of the plan — application no: 407/17 — can be seen on Dartmoor National Park’s website www.dartmoor. gov.uk/living-and-working/planning/search-for-an-application