St Andrews residents have to trudge through several inches of flood water every time it rains, it has been claimed.
Now a councillor has called for assurances the issue will be tackled before a major development of 370 houses begins.
Liberal Democrat councillor Jane Ann Liston fears the planned Craigtoun North development could exacerbate long-term problems with flooding.
And to illustrate the extent of the issue on Melville Road, she went along armed with a rubber duck and a ruler to test the depth of the water following a downpour last week.
She said: “It was still three inches and that was well past its peak when both carriageways and the footways were covered.”
Ms Liston said householders had even taken their shoes and socks off to wade through the water during severe flooding.
“Sometimes they can’t get their cars through so that’s the only way for them to get home,” she said.
St Andrews flooding has worsened in recent years
The councillor said the road had been flooding regularly since houses were built at Younger Gardens some 20 years ago.
“This has worsened in recent years,” she said.
“It appears that the water is running off the saturated ground in the adjacent field.
“However, that field is the approved site for the Craigtoun North development.”
She added: “Not only is it wrong that 80 households cannot access their homes without trudging through about six inches of water, but there is a real concern the construction of 300 houses in that field will exacerbate the situation.
“I have asked the planning service what mitigations are proposed for the development and also whether these take into account the current flooding patterns.
“It may be that the agreed drainage systems will have to be reconsidered.”
Fife Council service manager Alastair Hamilton confirmed any flood and drainage implications were considered as part of the planning process.
He added: “When the planning application is assessed, we take any potential impact of flooding into consideration and make sure any measures to deal with that are part of the planning consent.”
Ambitious plans for Craigtoun North were approved in 2018.
The multimillion-pound project includes 370 houses, employment land, retail and a link road.
