Bollards! Recently one of the bollards blocking Friary Road, (formerly Friary Lane) was knocked over. It’s rapidly been replaced with a plastic one. Is this a good ideal? I don’t think it is. It means any vehicle outside the school and church has to do a three point turn or reverse down Egerton Road.
Surely it safer for a car to drive down the lane than turn around outside the school? Is there any evidence to support this? I checked with the Department for Transport. They said “in 2023 (the latest year for which data are available), there were a total of 4,618 child pedestrian casualties, of which 101 were hit by vehicles reversing, 3,187 hit by vehicles going ahead, and the rest (1,330) hit by vehicles doing other manoeuvres (such as turning, overtaking or slowing)”.
101 casualties doesn’t sound like a lot. But consider how much time cars spend going forward compared to reversing.
The bollards were installed in the early 1980s because a wannabe councillor needed an “issue” to campaign on. I didn’t think it made sense then. It makes even less sense now because there’s now a segregated walkway for pedestrians.
I suggest it’s time for a rethink.
Barry Cash, Bishopston