RESIDENTS who feel the value of their land has been affected by the £65.5m Blunsdon by-pass can apply for compensation.

The Highways Agency has issued a notice to inform the public of the move under the Land Compensation Act 1973.

Land owners can apply for compensation if they feel the value of their property has depreciated by more than £50 due to physical factors such as noise, vibration, smell, fumes, smoke and artificial lighting.

The discharge onto land of any solid or liquid substance will also be taken into account.

Grandfather-of-eight Brian Hobbs, 73, of Blunsdon, said: “We’ve had to put up with noise and dust and clean our windows every day.

“There still seems to be a lot of traffic. We’ll have to wait until the bypass is finished to see what a difference it makes.”

Ryan Goodall, 23, said: “I’ve lived here all my life and the noise is something you get used to. I’ve not really ever thought about compensation.”

Property owners or those with a freehold or tenancy with at least three years left to run at the time of making a claim, could be eligible for compensation.

John Clifford, the owner of Best Western Premier Blunsdon House Hotel, has already applied to the valuation office for a rates review, as he believes his business has lost 20 per cent in revenue since April last year.

“I think there is still a perception of heavy traffic and people tend to avoid the area,” he said.

“We’ve had problems with taxis not wanting to pick customers up. At other times guests have missed the turning and have gone all the way to Cricklade. Little things like that can put people off.

“We heard scare stories of people stopping in the middle of the road not sure which way to go.

“We can tell our takings are down based on benchmark takings from other hotels in Swindon.”

Robin Miller, a spokesman for the Highways Agency, said: “This notice is standard procedure to find out how much of an impact this has on people living in the area.”

The 3.5km bypass consists of one underbridge, two overbridges and one grade separated junction. It was built to improve journey time reliability through Blunsdon and improve safety.

Compensation can be claimed from November 17. A claim cannot be made before the first claim day.

For more information, please write to Sarah Collins at the Highways Agency Compensation Team at 5 Broadway, Broad Street, Birmingham, B15 1BL.