PLANS to build 235 high-rise luxury apartments next to Chester City Council's proposed 'glass slug' HQ have sparked fears of traffic gridlock.

Developer Watkin Jones wants to bulldoze the Delamere Street bus station to make way for four separate blocks.

Opponents fear that Chester's inner ring road could grind to a halt with the traffic generated by three new developments - apartments, council headquarters and a £30m college campus behind nearby Northgate Arena.

The bus station proposal is for 141 apartments, together with shops, bars, restaurants as well as an underground car park with 350 public and 116 private spaces.

A glass bridge connects a second site of two high rise blocks - six and 10 storeys high - of 35 apartments and 16 private car spaces.

A third site is earmarked for a single high- rise block, up to five storeys, to house 59 'social housing' apartments plus 18 car spaces.

The development, which was yesterday criticised by the county council's environment strategic panel, comes as West Cheshire College plans a nearby campus on part of a 430-space car park for thousands of students.

Despite their concerns, county leaders don't believe Chester City Council will take heed of their worries and will pass the plan.

As the strategic planning authority, the county council formally objects to the scheme, saying a 10-storey tower at Gorse Stacks will be detrimental to the area.

It says the development also ignores the city council's development brief, which states that 50 dwellings should be permitted on the site to a maximum of four storeys.

This fear is shared by the Chester Civic Trust which will on Monday hold crisis talks with city councillors.

Trust chairman Peter Bingham said: 'We are concerned with the identity and possible visual intrusion of this development

'I have seen little, if anything, from Chester Town Hall to suggest the impact these kind of developments have on the road infrastructure. I feel the city council is breaking its own guidelines in agreed area development briefs.'

County planning officer Alan Thornley said: 'The application proposes 235 dwellings which would further exacerbate the current over-supply of housing within the Chester district.

'The appropriateness and impact of a 10-storey building on the site is of particular concern.'

County Cllr Peter Byrne (Lab, City): 'This development will definitely increase congestion on the inner ring road.'

Although he slammed the proposals he believes the city council will pass them.

'We have been here several times before. The city council is ignoring our views. Whether any higher power will come down on them remains to be seen,' he said. 'We don't want to add to the existing housing blocks in the area.'

After the meeting, he added: 'The only people that can stop the city council is the Government Office North West. It is an unlikely step as it will be too controversial.

'I think the West Cheshire College development will break the camel's back as there is insufficient car parking.'

Cllr Molly Hale (Lib Dem, Hoole & Newton) said: 'I object to this 10-storey development. I can't see the purpose of it. It's very close to the walls. It's an aberration.'

Cllr John Burke (Con, Gowy) said the development would overshadow the city walls and would do nothing to help the car parking situation in Chester, adding: 'The city council has been busy selling off car parks.'

With regard to car parking, Labour group environment spokesman David Robinson said the county Tory administration had the chance to help the city but chose not to when it rejected the CDTS scheme in 2002.

'This Tory administration have destroyed car parking in Chester by destroying CDTS which was to increase car parking in Chester,' he said.

'When they made their decision they did not understand the consequences or what they were doing with regard to the master plan for Chester. We are now getting these fragmented applications. We are in a complete mess.'

City council development director Andy Farrall says his authority supports the scheme. He says the development brief does not limit the number of dwellings to 50, saying it's a guide.