Yapton resident Terry Knott explained that the 5,000-home development would be enclosed by the railway line and the A27 to the north. There is also the A259 to the south. This made a mockery, he claimed, of the proposals to create 4,000 jobs in the development. That would need some 30 new businesses in the area.

"What company is going to set itself up in a metal box?" he asked.

"They are going to have to get across the railway line one way or another and get on to the A27, or not as the case may be, to get to their premises.

"Improving that transport infrastructure will cost £200-500m. The Arundel bypass has been rumbling around for years.

"The most optimistic forecast based on government plans is that something might happen by 2016.

"Yet they want to start building eco-towns by 2010/11, which is going to mean five or six years of substantial construction traffic and the first households going up without any improvements."

Mr Knott was speaking as the launch of Communities Against Ford Eco-Town was held last Friday.

He is the co-chairman of CAFE. Supporters of the group gathered in a field in Yapton to state their case.

The previous night had seen some 300 campaigners pack into Yapton and Ford Village Hall for a protest meeting. Others had to be turned away.

Those present came from eight villages, as well as Arundel, to make their stand against the proposals.

"Every single person in that meeting was against an eco-town at Ford," said Mr Knott.

"It was not so much based on Nimby-ism but purely that trying to shoehorn a development which is three times the size of Arundel and two-thirds that of Littlehampton into the Arun-Climping gap just does not make sense. It's also eco-madness to build on grade one farmland for wheat, corn and barley at a time when food shortages are occurring around the world."

Protestors against the eco-town claim that 87 per cent of the proposed site is farmland.

He said keeping the gap undeveloped had been sacrosanct for many years under planning policies. Two proposals for a Ford eco-town have been accepted by the government on to a 15-strong national shortlist of the schemes. Of these, ten developments will go ahead.

The Ford Airfield Vision Group and the Ford Enterprise Hub envisage a development of 5,000 homes, backed by new businesses, shops and schools.

The idea of an eco-town is to lead the way in environmentally friendly building. Properties will be expected to have the latest energy efficient measures.

Cars will be banned from the centre and measures put in place to encourage walking and cycling.