Fears a lack of crossings on a busy road close to a High Wycombe school could lead to staff and students being put in danger has prompted a complaint.
Buckinghamshire Council have been urged to look at creating more safe crossing points on Hamilton Road and the A404 Amersham Road, close to Royal Grammar School, after a near-miss crash earlier this month.
“A car may stop to allow a child to cross the road however drivers behind not realising why the car in front has stopped may overtake at the same time, potentially causing serious injury,” the concerned resident complained on FixMyStreet.
“This scenario partly occurred recently during June 2022 - although fortunately at the last second the student and driver saw each other, and an accident was avoided.
“It could understandably happen again with potentially serious results. It is dangerous and not entirely surprising when there is no crossing between the school and its car park.
“Considering it is a school with students as young as eleven years old appropriate safety measures are somewhat lacking. An accident would not be surprising at present for either staff or students.
“Would it be possible for a safety advisor to take a look at the problem and take note of the high level of pedestrian traffic at the school during school hours?”
According to crashmap.co.uk, which compiles data on road incidents from the Department for Transport based on figures released annually, there have been three crashes in the area in recent years.
All three crashes around the junction of Hamilton Road and the A404 Amersham Road were categorised as “slight” – one in December 2017, involving one vehicle and one casualty, one in July 2018 involving two vehicles and one casualty, and one in March 2019, also involving two vehicles and one casualty.
Cllr Steve Broadbent, the cabinet member for transport at Buckinghamshire Council, said the area is actually one of those on the list to focus on with their new powers to enforce moving traffic offences.
He said: “We are sorry to hear that some parents have concerns about road safety in this area. We are aware of this and continue to work with the school and other parties to address this.
“One of the areas we intend to focus on with our new powers to enforce moving traffic offences is the issue of drivers not abiding by the rules of keep clear areas outside schools.
“Hamilton Road is one of the areas listed for attention. Keeping these areas clear will improve road safety and is something we aim to prioritise.
“Our Schools Sustainable Travel and Road Safety teams work with all schools to improve road safety and pupil awareness.”
It is not the first time there have been complaints about the safety of pupils and staff on the busy road and the then-Wycombe District Council did try to address the problem.
An uncontrolled road crossing was installed in 2018, which featured dropped kerbs, an anti-skid surface, hazard warning signs and new yellow zigzag markings to stop parents dropping off and picking up students, after a councillor said it was down to “pure luck” that there had not been a fatal crash.
But at the time, Cllr Tony Green said the uncontrolled crossing could actually cause more crashes, saying: “If there is no requirement for motorists to actually stop at this crossing, what good will it do? Isn’t there a risk it could increase accidents if pedestrians think they can cross on it but motorists know they don’t have to stop for it?”
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