PLANS to build 3,600 homes and a new railway station in Chelmsford have been given the go-ahead.
On Tuesday, permission was granted to extend Beaulieu Park, near Springfield, at a Chelmsford City Council planning meeting.
The £1 billion project is expected to create 9,000 jobs and more than half a million square feet of commercial space.
Developer Countryside Zest says that 27 per cent of the homes will be affordable rent or shared ownership and plans to build a 150-room hotel, two primary schools and a secondary school and 220 acres of parkland.
A thousand homes will be built north of White Hart Lane, 870 to the east of Essex Regiment Way, and 1,600 around the parkland near New Hall School.
It is proposed the new station will feature shops, cafes, a bus station and a multi-storey car park but is still subject to approval from Parliament.
Without it, the developers would scale back their proposals and build a 100-bed hotel and halve the shopping space on offer.
The number of jobs created would also fall to 4,000.
Councillor Neil Gulliver, cabinet member for planning and economic development, said: "The station is not just important for Chelmsford.
"Even Norwich City Council has recognised the important capacity implications for rail users north of Chelmsford that this project will give."
The hope is that the station will be operational when more than 2,500 homes are occupied and a third of the newly built business park is up and running.
A passing loop will allow express and freight traffic to pass stopping trains in an area that currently has only one track in each direction.
Peter Radford, chairman of Chelmsford Commuters and Rail Travellers (CART), said: "It's good news but from the commuter point of view, the sooner the better.
"There are so many advantages, fewer people will need to use Chelmsford main station, trains will be able to pass each other, reducing bottlenecks and hopefully travel will be more comfortable. Just get on with it."
But some on Chelmsford City Council are worried that the development will bring traffic on nearby roads to a standstill.
"The only people not thought of are the existing residents of Springfield. The place will be a car park morning and night," said Springfield North ward councillor Pam Lane, the only member of the 14-strong committee to vote against the application.
New junctions and roundabouts will be needed to link the scheme into the city, including access to the Boreham interchange. Roadworks could start as early as next spring.
But Countryside's planning boss John Oldham says there must be some "pain" before the benefits of the development start to show.
The scheme has taken nearly 18 months of negotiation to reach a stage where Chelmsford City Council would grant planning permission. There may also be a residential care home.
Construction could start as early as next April, with 300 homes ready for 2015 and 1,000 for 2017/18.
