Fears have been raised that a link road to a revamped Broadmeadow trading estate would cut through the Coombe Valley if proposals by Waitrose go ahead.

In its November newsletter, The Teignmouth Alliance of Independents asks if there is a hidden agenda behind the Broadmeadow plans. It says that hundreds of more cars could mean the construction of a new road that 'could only run through Broadmeadow, up to Headway Cross, to Moor View drive, across Coombe Valley to Drakes Avenue to meet with the main Exeter Road'.

The group states that this would open up infill sites for local housing developments. Alliance leader Edward Bush said that the strip of land from Broadmeadow toward Haldon was the obvious place for development. 'It would be naïve to think that this idea has not been mooted at some point.

'We have raised a scenario here based on what has happened in other areas, and that is, once development starts it continues.' Teignbridge Council admits that highways will have to be improved if development goes ahead. Its options are to improve the existing access by widening the estate road and improvements on the A379 Torquay to Teignmouth Road, which includes Shaldon Bridge, It is also considering a new junction and road widening on the A379, new access road across the landfill area and new access to Baytor.

The existing estate road would be closed with a new turning area. Both plans mean that privately-owned land would have to be bought by the council and business relocated. Teignbridge Council leader Cllr Alan Connett said that large-scale development was not planned.

'We are not promoting a ring road or large scale development on the western edge of Teignmouth to facilitate such a road, and this is evidenced by the modest scale of development of 120 dwellings proposed in the council's Core Strategy.

'In contrast, we have recognised the environmental constraints on large-scale growth, due to the Coastal Preservation Area, Area of Great Landscape Value designation and wildlife habitats, and are proposing only limited development that should meet social and economic needs,' he said. The feared link road would run through the environmentally-sensitive Coombe Valley, a designated local nature reserve.

Last year, consultations were opened on a landowners and developers 'wish list' of areas, which included nine parcels of land around the western edge of Teignmouth between Broadmeadow and Higher Exeter Road. As yet, preferred sites for development have yet to be earmarked.

But Core Strategy documents indicate that Teignmouth will have to house just 120 dwellings and two hectares of employment land. The area is constrained by the Coastal Preservation Area, an Area of Great Landscape Value and wildlife habitats.