The future of the Driving Experience Days on the Top Gear test track near Cranleigh is in the air.
The building permit expired in late April and Dunsfold Airport Ltd has applied for a third extension to continue their trackdays through 2024.
The approval, first given in 2012, was temporary as Waverley Borough Council plans to build hundreds of homes in Dunsfold Park over the long term.
Read more: Top Gear Series 30: Why the new season doesn’t use a Dunsfold Aerodrome track
The councilors of the City Council’s East Planning Committee announced yesterday evening (28.
Tom Gordon lives 450 meters from the track and has had permission to operate a wedding location from his farm since 2018.
He told the planning committee on Tuesday evening: “Like many of my neighbors, we have endured the often relentless engine noise and screeching tires from track day events for years.
“We soon got to the point where we stopped complaining, not because the noise no longer caused fear or annoyance, but because it was very clear that nothing could or could be done about it.”
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Jamie McAllister said on behalf of the applicant, “I would ask you that this is not a resident complaining about the impact on local amenities, but a new commercial organization whose interests do not coincide with those of Dunsfold Park.
“A new development should not limit the ability of existing companies to continue as a going concern.”
He added: “We are not a motorsport facility.
“It’s not a race. It’s about giving the common public the opportunity to drive extraordinary cars, but in an orderly manner.”
Mr McAllister said the noise did not exceed 60 decibels, the level of normal conversations, and Covid bans have resulted in a “more sensitive subjective assessment of the noise as activity has increased again”.
A Lotus Elan on the Dunsfold catwalk
(Image: Paul Burgman)
However, Mr Gordon said the noise plan was inappropriate or in line with modern practice. “Twice as much of the track is closer to my home than the monitor,” he said.
Councilor John Gray (Con, Chiddingfold and Dunsfold) said: “This affects all of Dunsfold. You can hear these trackdays downstairs at the church which is over a mile away. The noise is harmful to the environment.
“There was some understanding on site of things like Top Gear that had some meaning and association with it, but these are just track days.
“This committee has to be aware of complaints for seven years, seven years of locals trying to get things done.”
Driving experience days are capped at 30 per year, but Cllr Gray said there could be 10-15 events in a month and up to five consecutive days.
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