CHOLSEY'S rail station makes the village a prime target for new homes in the area, the parish council chairman has warned.

Mark Gray said he feared the prospect of hundreds of new homes being proposed for Cholsey as part of South Oxfordshire District Council's Local Plan for development.

Consultation is under way on plans for additional new homes, following the government-enforced Strategic Housing Market Assessment for the whole of the county.

An extra 428 homes are proposed for Wallingford and Mr Gray said he feared hundreds could be built in Cholsey as part of the allocation of 2,466 homes for larger villages.

Mr Gray, also county councillor for Benson and Cholsey, said: "This consultation is under way and people in the village really need to get involved and have their say.

"The double-edged sword for the village is the station - it's a real draw for developers.

"With electrification people will be able to get to London even quicker so they are prepared to move further out to places like Cholsey."

Mr Gray said there were currently about 1,700 homes in Cholsey, including the 350 built at the new Fairmile estate.

He added: "We are likely to get a significant number of new homes as part of the larger villages allocation.

"There has also been quite a lot of in-fill development in recent years, including 60 Linden Homes houses.

"Villages like Cholsey and Benson have constrained village centres and the existing infrastructure is struggling to cope with the strain of new houses being built.

"Existing parking places in Cholsey are already under strain because of the Fairmile development and some residents are upset about the A329 main road running past their homes because they feel the traffic on it goes too fast."

Mr Gray said the parish council would prefer not to have hundreds of new homes built in the village but believed the construction of some new homes was inevitable.

He added that the large field between Papist Way and the A329 could accommodate about 300 new homes.

But the parish council wanted any development there to built alongside shops, a doctors' surgery and possibly a pre-school.

"New homes need to be properly supported with infrastructure," he said.

"I would like to try to make sure that Cholsey is not hit with hundreds of new homes but that field site is probably the best option."

South Oxfordshire District Council planners consulted residents about the preferred options for the Local Plan at a session at Cholsey Pavilion this week.

As well as 428 homes for Wallingford, 594 homes are being planned for Thame, 2,466 for larger villages, and 3,500 homes for a strategic site.

Six options have been identified as possible locations for the strategic site including Chalgrove Airfield but SODC council leaders have not yet revealed which of the six sites has been chosen.