DEVELOPERS have delayed a controversial planning application seeking permission to build more homes in Leckhampton.
The consortium behind the plans to build 1,300 houses, a primary school and a GP surgery has postponed submitting its case for the development to Cheltenham Borough Council.
The detailed application for land near Kidnappers Lane was expected to be handed to planning bosses this month.
But the developers have postponed the application until at least February as they answer questions from residents on the volume of traffic.
The developers have brought in specialist consultancy firm Atkins to help them figure out the traffic conundrum.
Spokesman Ally Kennedy said: "The consortium is committed to ensuring any future application is fully supported by robust evidence and informed by consultation with local people.
"Whilst a significant amount of technical assessment work has been completed, there are other areas which are ongoing and, for this reason, it is expected that an application will be submitted in the New Year.
"It is common practice for consultants with expertise in a particular area to be engaged on development proposals of this kind.
"Our consultation has shown that traffic and transport is a key issue for local people and we recognise it is important to get this right."
As well as traffic issues, residents have also raised concerns about the impact the development could have on school places.
While the development does include plans for a primary school, the question of where children of secondary school age will go remains unanswered.
Councillor Andrew Chard (Leckhampton, C) opposes the development, but he believes the fact the developer is taking traffic concerns seriously is positive.
He said: "I think that the delay is a good thing because it gives Cheltenham Borough Council a certain amount of time to get its act together with the joint core strategy.
"Hopefully, we will be a little bit further down the line by then.
"The important thing is that they have recognised the importance of the traffic issue.
"Obviously they have listened to the feedback they have received, which is good, and they have realised that traffic is one of the major problems with this proposal.
"That has always been my major concern with this."
The consortium has previously stated it expects the development to result in an additional 800 cars on the roads in and around Leckhampton during rush hour.
However, this estimate has been disputed by campaigners who believe the figure should be much higher.