Villagers oppose speed-warning signs
Campaigners are fighting plans to put speed warning signs on their streets, because they think they will spoil the look of their village.
While many communities are crying out for traffic-calming measures, people in Quorn are furious about a council's attempts to introduce a 20mph speed limit on roads near a school.
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Phil Child, chairman of Quorn Parish Council
They said the high-visibility, flashing signs to warn drivers of the reduced limit would ruin the appearance of the village centre.
Leicestershire County Council plans to introduce the signs this summer as part of a safety zone outside Rawlins Community College, in Loughborough Road.
Quorn Parish Council chairman Phil Child, who is a highways engineer for Rutland County Council, said the proposed signs were ugly, unnecessary and a waste of cash.
He said: "We are locked in a bit of a battle with Leicestershire County Council over this.
"It seems determined to put up between 12 and 15 of these big flashing signs for the 20mph in Loughborough Road and the side streets and ignore the fact that its a conservation area.
"They would look awful and what makes it worse is there is no need for them.
"Loughborough Road already has speed bumps and humps and cars just don't speed down there.
"We very much want the children at Rawlins to be safe but a problem is being solved that doesn't exist and this speed limit is being imposed just for the sake of it.
"We have been fighting this tooth and nail.
"Perhaps it's unusual for residents to be opposed to traffic-calming but we really feel there's no need for this and we are very concerned about how the village will look."
Graham Stocks, a Quorn resident and Campaign for the Protection of Rural England spokesman, said: "It is a case of cracking a walnut with a sledge hammer.
"People are not pleased about the prospect of all these signs. I do, however, think you have to be careful when putting the street scene before children's safety.
"Having said that, I don't think this scheme has anything to do with safety.
"The 20mph limit is only advisory and won't have much effect."
Nobody from the 1,446-pupil college was available to comment.
County Hall is set to spend £5,500 on the scheme, but no figures for the number of accidents there had been in the area were available.
A county council spokeswoman said: "The measures proposed will address the need identified in Rawlins Community College for a safer environment to encourage more students to walk or cycle to college.
"Flashing amber lights are timed to inform drivers to reduce their speeds to below 20mph for periods of the day that pupils are arriving and departing from school premises."
She said the residents had been consulted on the scheme and their views would be considered.
*Do signs spoil the village in your area, let us know - e-mail Dan Martin
22 Comments
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by Seymour, Rothley
Friday, May 29 2009, 9:57AM
“This is typical of the transport department at the LCC. They ignore genuine requests for speed / traffic calming measures and continue with their own warped agenda.
The head of the transport department (M. Lugg) needs to be held to account.”
by GRAHAM STOCKS - LEICESTERSHIRE CPRE, LE12 8XT
Thursday, May 28 2009, 10:57AM
“Will the Leicester Mercury be taking this story further? There is obviously a lack of transparency in this matter and County Hall/Charnwood borough Council ought to come clean. It's obvious from the comments added to the above article that people could smell a rat, even though they had no idea of the background facts. Attempts like this to pull the wool over peoples' eyes for commercial gain need to be exposed publicly.
Speed is not the issue and he above article is misleading. Charnwood Borough Council are no doubt keen to cram in houses anywhere they can, following the edict dictated by the East Midlands Regional Plan. However, their first duty is to make provision for the existing population - in fact there is an obligation in planning law to not only provide allotments when the demand exists but to budget for this eventuality.
The Leicestershire Branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England will do all it can to preserve the valuable allotment amenity and open green space in the village of Quorn.”
by M, leciestershire
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 2:55PM
“CRAZY! thats all i can say.”
by GRAHAM STOCKS - LEICESTERSHIRE CPRE, LE12 8XT
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 2:43PM
“As a post-script I ought to say that I have requested that keeping zig-zags adjacent to schools free of parked vehicles ought to to be a priority. It appears that these road markings are effectively advisory unless a local authority takes the trouble to create a Traffic Regulation Order, in which case parking on them will result in automatic penalties. My request to create TROs to the local authority concerned, the County Council and my MP have all met with no success. If the County Council really wishes to address this problem they might make this their priority instead of tinkering around with something which will achieve very little in terms of road safety.”
by GRAHAM STOCKS - LEICESTERSHIRE CPRE, LE12 8XT
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 2:29PM
“OK - here's the nitty-gritty: vehicle speed is not a problem within the area in question - it's the sheer numbers of motor vehicles and cycles using this stretch of road at certain times, namely the beginning and the end of the school day. Even now, students are dropped off and met by cars stopping at the bus stop and on the pedestrian crossing zig-zags outside the college. The standard of road use is already generally quite poor and putting up flashing signs will not radically alter the situation in the vicinity of the college. What this business really has to do with concerns plans submitted for a development of 34 houses, more or less opposite the college, most of which will affect the last allotment site in the village. The one thing killing off this application is the traffic situation in the area around Rawlins College. This cynical desire to supposedly manage speed is a complete non sequitur; it is being proposed simply to facilitate more built development in a village struggling to cope with certain types of facilities. What the village does need is more amenity space within the village envelope, especially allotments, the waiting list for which is as long as your arm.”
by Daniel, Leicester
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 12:34PM
“How long has this village been around for? and how long have cars been driving past safely?? so why is this now a problem? there is no mention of any serious accidents happening there, so if its not broke then why fix it! seems like a further waste of time to me.”
by Julie, Leicester
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 11:59AM
“Personally I think the 'look' of the village would be 'spoiled' even more by the sight of bunches of flowers and memorials left on the roadside when a tragdey has occurred, but that's just me...”
by frank, cosby
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 11:37AM
“kate,instead of imagining other people who dare to have a view "wrapping children up in cotton wool and stepping in front of buses" you need to spend time developing a healthier imagination is the air a bit funny in holeville?”
by D, Leicestershire
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 11:37AM
“You can't legislate against idiots - sorry, highly skilled, responsible motorists. They recently put in 'traffic calming' measures near where I live and you still get morons - sorry, highly intelligent motorists, doing 50 mph in a 30 mph zone at the bottom of a hill with a blind bend at the bottom. The only way to deal with dangerous, poor, motorists is to take them off the road and retrain them.”
by Fred, Leicester
Wednesday, May 27 2009, 11:07AM
“This is nothing new. Do you remember all those villages who resisted flood barriers along many local rivers because it spoiled the outlook of their pretty little village. Once flooded it was all blamed on the goverment for not doing anything about flood prevention. I am sure if a child gets killed they will find someone to blame, but definately not one the villagers”