Traffic chaos caused by High Wycombe’s newest Aldi store – which has seen some drivers hit with a torrent of threats and abuse – was predicted back in 2017, frustrated campaigners have said.

Road rage frustrations have been “boiling over”, shoppers have claimed, as drivers face being stuck in long queues trying to get in and out of Tannery Road’s new budget supermarket.

Cock Lane resident Ken Dyer told the Bucks Free Press last week that High Wycombe had “created a monster”, with cars unable to get in or out of the retail area at the weekends – which had seen some drivers “verbally abused and threatened”.

But the Pimms Action Group, which represents residents living near the Gomm Valley, said it told council officials back in October 2017 when it officially objected to the plans for the new supermarket that the area would be “incapable” of coping with the extra traffic.

Writing to Wycombe District Council’s planning team on October 3, 2017, chairman of the action group Tony Garner said he was “appalled” with the plans for a new supermarket.

At the time, he wrote: “The immediate area is already under pressure and pollution from traffic overload and this situation will be the entry and exit at Gomm Road from the development in the Gomm Valley of 600 homes and a school, plus a commercial site.

“Under those circumstances how can it be sensible to grant the application for a supermarket which, to be viable, depends on high numbers of customers, which means cars and commercial vehicles?”

He added that the plans showed “a lack of foresight”, saying: “We will take no joy in being proved right because the local community will have to live with the mayhem on a daily basis.”

Speaking to the Bucks Free Press this week, Mr Garner said the concerns raised by shoppers in the paper last week confirmed what they feared most.

He said the situation is likely going to get worse amid a building explosion in the area - including up to 1,100 homes on Gomm Valley and a new school, an Aldi supermarket, 550 homes on Abbey Barn South and 90 homes on the Abbey Barn North site – which could signal further gridlock for drivers.

In emails to Transport for Bucks, which have been seen by the Free Press, Mr Garner said: “The number of increased vehicles on the roads in High Wycombe will be in the region of 3,000 to 3,750 – of which a substantial number will be centralised on using the London Road and the central roundabouts in High Wycombe.

“The ensuing result – mayhem and gridlock, a catastrophic nightmare for the whole of High Wycombe.”

In response, both Bucks County Council (BCC) and Wycombe District Council (WDC) appeared to point the finger at each other.

A spokesman for WDC said: “The Highway Authority are Buckinghamshire County Council. They were consulted on the planning application and asked if they had any comments to make. They responded by letter dated 27 April 2017.

“The application was accompanied by a detailed transport assessment and during the consideration of the application further traffic modelling was requested by the Highway Authority.”

And a BCC spokesman said they “responded during the planning application consultation in April 2017, following surveys and modelling that showed minimal highways impact, as most journeys to the new store would transfer from another retailer without resulting in severe congestion. A 'spike' in traffic was anticipated when the new store opened but was expected to settle in due course”.