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Planning for a new nursing home on “one of the most dangerous roads in Northern Ireland” has been refused over fears it could lead to a rise in traffic deaths.

The state-of-the-art 86 bed residential ‘Macklin Care Home’ was to be located at 531 Saintfield Road (opposite Brackenvale). The council was told the road sees 11 million journeys annually.

Access from the main road to the proposed site had been supported by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI). However, a report by Roads Service showed it had agreed that the the access road to the site was “substandard”.

No road traffic survey had been carried out for the area, with DfI relying on a computer prediction for increased traffic on the permitted road.

Castlereagh South councillor, Nathan Anderson (Ind) described the road as “one of the most dangererous in Northern Ireland”, adding that his conscience could not support the approval as it was “a matter of life and death”.

High profile opposition was also outlined in chambers by Lagan Valley MLA, Emma Little-Pengelly (DUP).

She said: “I have been battling with DfI Roads Service for years on road safety measures, I am an expert on that. I have been told as there are road speed cameras that the level of traffic should be down on this road.

“There have been 788 speeding offences on this road in the first two years of operation and that was at a time of Covid when traffic volume was at an unprecedented low.”

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Downshire West Alderman Jim Dillon warned that there could be “heavy legal costs for the council” to pay if the planning committee should go against officials’ recommendation for approval.

In response, Casltereagh East councillor Martin Gregg (Alliance) alluding to the “threat of a judicial review” said: “We have to do the right thing, the true cost of refusing these plans will not be in money to the council, the cost will be measured in lives.

“In my opinion the increase in journey to and from the site will go from 20 a day to some 200 plus, a figure which is not disputed by either side and this is evidence of intensification of traffic, which will prejudice road safety.”

Following a three hour debate, the committee voted three for (3 UUP) and six against (3 DUP and 3 Alliance) with the plans refused.

Nursing home plans refused over fear of road deaths