A ROW has ensued to determine how to stop the 'traffic chaos' at the Newlands recycling centre.

The mayor of Malvern, Cllr Marilyn Birks, has suggested introducing a booking system at the recycling centre to help reduce the tailbacks.

However, while some councillors have dismissed the idea as terrible, believing the site is not fit for the purpose, others have said something urgently needs to be done before an accident happens.

Cllr Birks said she has had meetings with the head of operations at the site expressing her concerns about the issues and potential problems this was having on the A449 Worcester Road.

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At a meeting of Malvern Town Council, she asked for support to approach Malvern Hills District Council and begin discussions with Worcestershire County Council to see if the idea of the booking system could be feasible.

She said that due to restricted space on the site traffic it is often queued at the entrance, and tails back onto the A449 which blocks the road.

She added discussions with people in Herefordshire have led her to believe a booking system would be much more efficient.

Cllr Anne Cherry said she has spoken to members of the tip who feel a booking system would be a disastrous idea.

She said: "People would not respect the booking system and would turn up anyway and because of the way you have to go into the site, they don't have the ability to turn people around."

Cllr Jude Green said residents had been in touch with her about the 'traffic chaos' and she was concerned there would be an accident soon as she had seen many near misses.

She added: "I don't see why we can't pursue this to see if it is a goer and enter a dialogue with Worcestershire County Council, something has to happen to reduce that traffic chaos."

Cllr Nick Houghton said he thought the bigger issue was the nearby retail park, and said they would need to address more than the tip if they were going to tackle the queuing issue.

Cllr David Watkins added: "This is the opportunity to move that waste site from the very inappropriate position it is now, it has served its purpose over the years but it has been outgrown.  

"There is no help at the moment on that site, it is too small and shares it with the highways division at the county council."

Cllr Birks's motion was voted down. 

Councillor Emma Stokes, Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, said: “Being able to access Household Recycling Centre freely and safely is very important.

"There are many considerations associated with the operation of the centres, including the traffic at busy times in certain locations.

“We would be happy to liaise with Malvern Town Council to understand their views.”