Sunday 17 October 2010

Tragedy on Red Road



Friday 15th October

Sad news this week as it was confirmed that another tragic loss of life occurred on Red Road. This time a pedestrian was knocked down and who later died of his injuries.

One of the reasons I came into local politics was to do with this road. I continually lobbied the County about the hazards and like to think that the warning signs are due in part to those efforts.

The point is that the road itself does present year round hazards. It is an arterial route which means it is busy, with all sorts of traffic, from articulated lorries through to bicycles. It undulates considerably along its length. It has sharp and twisty corners. It has three busy junctions and a number of houses which enter onto it. It borders a natural common and hence has pedestrians crossing it. I'm not a highways engineer but it seems to be the 'perfect storm' in terms of standing conditions, even before driver error, climatic conditions or excessive speed are added.

But don't take my word for it. The facts speak for themselves. I moved to this part of the world in 2002, and since I have lived here - several houses away from the Mac Road/Red Road junction since you ask - there have been six fatalities. During the summer in particular, we often hear the screeching of tyres as another accident occurs and I have several times assisted my neighbour in repairing fences that people have driven through.

You may recall that last year, the Surrey CC Local Area Committee voted for a speed limit reduction so that drivers would be made aware in no uncertain terms of the hazardous conditions that await them here. Regrettably policy vetoed our decision and the exhorbitant cost of so doing now prevents us from putting it in place: did you know for example that the regulations required to put a new limit in place would cost up to £250,000!

Its a dangerous road, perhaps the most dangerous in Surrey and my contention continues to be to have something done about it.

3 comments:

  1. Hi Stuart

    I can't disagree with a single word you have said here.

    Surrey County Council have an e-petition facility on their web site at:

    http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/sccwebsite/sccwspages.nsf/LookupWebPagesByTITLE_RTF/Petitions?opendocument

    I have spoken to our Deputy Mayor Cllr Dodds about this which as you know, he feels just as strongly as we do on this matter.

    The e-petition will carry more clout if it is created by either you or the Deputy Mayor, especially as you are Lightwater Cllr's.

    I am happy, once you have created the petition, to use the community email distribution list and the Surrey Heath community web site as a vehicle to get a large number of local residents to sign the petition.

    We really need to get County to listen to the will of local residents on this matter.

    Best wishes


    Paul Deach
    Surrey Heath Community Web Blog
    www.surreyheath-residents.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks Paul.
    I'll have a look into this.
    We Local County Councillors are keen to do something about this, but our hands are tied by the budget.
    The key is keeping it on the agenda for when the budgetary pressures are reduced.
    A petition could very well be an answer, but sometimes undoes the work already undertaken. If a petition is the answer, I'd be delighted to start and promote it.

    I'll take a look at the residents blog in the am. You're the second person to mention it to me today.

    Best
    Stuart MacLeod, CC

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi Stuart

    Cllr Dodds has started the E-Petition here: http://surreyheath-residents.co.uk/2010/10/25/petition-for-safe-crossing-of-red-road-please-sign/

    Would be great to see your name on there and perhaps you could blog/tweet about it too?

    Best wishes

    Paul Deach

    ReplyDelete