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MP secures commitment
from B&NES to improve road safety in Timsbury
North East Somerset's MP Dan Norris has successfully secured a commitment
for an urgent and thorough traffic survey to be carried out in Timsbury
as a first step towards making the roads safer for residents and visitors.
And he's also pleased
that a promise has been made by Bath & North East Somerset Council
to construct a new safety zone for Timsbury pedestrians wishing to cross
North Road from the Chapel Walk footpath as a matter of urgency.
Over 50 people came along to a residents' meeting that Mr Norris organised
at the Conygre Hall in Timsbury on Friday 11 December 2009). The Labour
MP told the meeting that their concerns over the dangerous North Road
in the village were high on his personal list of priorities when it came
to road safety.
"The purpose of the meeting was to allow residents to express their
concerns first hand to B&NES traffic engineers," said Mr Norris.
"Many people took the opportunity to do so."
He told the meeting: "Your concerns are important.Your concerns matter.
This issue is among my top four areas in the constituency where road safety
is a serious issue. The hazards rate alongside those experienced by residents
in Chew Magna, Pensford Hill and in Welton Road outside Welton School."
Mr Norris agreed with a comment from a resident who said that it was important
to know how the traffic moved through the village, where it was coming
from and where it was going to. Gathering data of this type would help
in deciding what options should be considered for traffic calming measures
in the village.
The meeting had been called by Mr Norris after he'd conducted a survey
of residents in the summer over road safety issues. His numerous meetings
with villagers had shown that North Road is an area of particular concern.
More than 200 households completed the survey and the results showed that:
- More than three
quarters thought parking was a problem for residents and visitors.
- 94 per cent of
those who responded felt that North Road was dangerous for pedestrians.
- 85 per cent felt
North Road was also hazardous for motorists and cyclists.
Among the possible
solutions put forward for parking were:
- A village car park.
- A residents' priority
parking scheme.
- Effective use of
yellow lines.
And for North Road
traffic calming:
- Creating a 20mph
zone.
- Constructing a
pedestrian crossing.
- Making the street
a one-way road.
A traffic officer
from B&NES who accepted the MP's invitation to attend the meeting
said there was no quick fix - surveys would have to be carried out to
determine the scale of the problem, a solution would have to be affordable
and then residents would be consulted on the options. When pressed by
Mr Norris to get on with those survey assessments, he agreed to do so.
Dan was supported by Timsbury community campaigner Amanda Cranston, who
said that it was time for B&NES to take action.
"It is important to move this on. Give us some guidance and tell
us what the options are. You have got to set out for us what is actually
do-able," she said.
On Chapel Walk, Timsbury, Dan welcomed Highways officers' undertaking
to make the crossing area safer by extending the pavement into the road
so pedestrians can see clearly any traffic before they cross and by possibly
providing safety bollards and a non-skid road surface. He will be checking
on the progress on these works early in the New Year.
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