Chapmanslade Parish Council has said it will be cracking down on traffic problems after a schoolgirl was involved in a minor accident earlier this month.
A group was set up recently by the parish council to try and combat problems with speeding in the village. The group is now hoping to push ahead with a ‘renewed sense of urgency’ following an incident near the primary school – the main problem area.
Chairman of Chapmanslade Parish Council, councillor Phil Jefferson said, “A few days before the council’s January meeting a pupil from the school was involved in a minor traffic accident. Fortunately she was not badly injured but this has brought a renewed sense of urgency to the issue, and we spent the first part of the meeting listening to the views of parents and residents on how road safety might be improved.
“Our High Street is dangerous and busy, and getting busier. During our Speedwatch sessions we regularly count up to 450 vehicles in an hour, a hundred more than when we started three years ago.
“Drivers continue to speed at each end of the village. Last month, on one afternoon we reported to the police nine drivers for speeding. Of course, in the vicinity of the school and pre-school, congestion at the beginning and end of the school day is the issue, and speeding is less of a factor.”
The council will soon be hoping to put a speed indicator device into occasional use, which notifies drivers if they’re going too fast. It will also be lobbying to make the village out of bounds for HGVs, by reducing the maximum weight limit from 18 to 7.5 tonnes. Speed limit signs at the Frome end of the village have also been reinstated.
The area near the primary school is emphasised as one that needs improvement.
Councillor Jefferson continued, “Tensions between parents and residents living in the immediate vicinity surface from time to time and the working group will strive to get this balance right, whilst giving utmost priority to the safety of our young people.
“A small number of parents do not help by ignoring the correct protocols whilst delivering or collecting their children and this issue will be addressed by the group too.”
The parish council can be contacted online via www.chapmanslade.org.uk Its next meeting will be held at the primary school on Thursday 10th March from 7.30pm.
