SIR - It is good to have the encouragement of Frank Williams not to give up; I hope we are making progress and that he is keeping warm and dry.
In objecting to the park & ride we have made serious criticisms of the process of selecting Itchen Farm.
The "majority" was only wafer thin, probably no more than 20. This pales to total insignificance in comparison with the 60,000 vehicles a day having the Itchen Farm as the focal point on their approach to the Valley.
The Itchen Farm supporters (were they a lobby?) were given added points for expressing themselves strongly and turning up in extra numbers at the focus group.
Fear of losing the gap between Compton and Winchester ranked high, but with what effect?
The Itchen Farm site occupies two-thirds of the precious gap in its most prominent location. But, do I hear you say, the Bushfield roundabout could not cope. Here too the claim is overstated; the figures are wrong and have been re-worked. When it opens in 2009, the queues at Bushfield will be worse then they are now.
What of the Local Plan? Its key concern is not the local gap but the special setting of Winchester. That has been ignored throughout the whole process.
In particular, when making his decision to plump for Itchen Farm, the county portfolio holder was not advised about key Structure or Local Plan issues and made an ill-informed decision.
Now the City Council, at the 11th-hour following public pressure, is to debate the issue. Let us hope they stand up for Winchester's historic landscape setting, apply the Local Plan and call for the county council to reconsider.
Chris Corcoran, Finches Lane, Twyford.
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