20/01632/VAR

110 - 120 Botley Road Oxford Oxfordshire OX2 0HH

2 August 2020

Variation of condition 28 (Hours of opening) and 29 (Delivery and servicing plan) of planning permission 14/00067/FUL (Demolition of existing retail store. Redevelopment of site with replacement retail store, together with 148 car parking spaces, remodelled access arrangements, cycle parking, landscaping and boundary treatment. (Revised vehicular access arrangements including re-modelling of cycle/pedestrian paths) (Amended Description) (Amended Plans: relocated bus shelter)) to extend the permitted delivery hours for HGVS throughout the week and the hours for e-commerce home delivery vans and browsing on Sundays and bank holiday with amendment of the approved servicing and delivery management plan at Waitrose foodstore.

It is clearly desirable that noise from delivery vehicles is kept to a minimum so as not to disturb neighbouring residents. It is regrettable that the Covid 19 pandemic prevented assessment of current delivery vehicle noise & that the only data available is theoretical dating from before the store was opened. Extending delivery hours to from 5.00 to 23.00 hours, 7 days a week increases the possibility of residents being disturbed by noise during the hours that they would normally expect to be asleep. OCS believes that future assessment of the actual noise generated should be made as soon as the pandemic allows and that any increase in delivery hours should be provisional until that data is produced. We accept that Waitrose have robust policies to minimise noise from deliveries.