Councillor Juliet Line Responds to Heamoor Traffic Proposals
My response to this consultation is informed by my own extensive consultation with local residents, councillors, Mounts Bay School school representatives, highways officers, and independent experts. I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who spoke to me about this scheme: those who emailed and phoned me, stopped me in the street, came along to my on-site residents’ meeting, chatted with me in the Sportsman’s, replied to my posts on Facebook and offered expert advice.
For many years Heamoor residents have been calling for action to be taken to tackle speeding on Madron Road, to improve pedestrian safety and to tackle the congestion that happens at the beginning and end of every school day. They welcome this scheme’s aims of improving road safety and supporting active travel. However some of the proposed measures as presented are seriously concerning, and will need to be removed or amended.
The key difficulty with the scheme is that there are two separate problems to address: speeding (in certain locations) and congestion (at certain times of day). Some of the proposed elements might alleviate the former, but are likely to severely exacerbate the latter.
I will consider each element individually as they appear on the drawings, and set out the issues as I perceive them, proposing alternatives where possible.
Site Notice 1 – Boscathnoe Lane
New imprint on current raised-table crossings
This measure is uncontroversial and is welcome. It will make these crossing points appear more prominent and more visible to drivers. There would be a preference for a controlled crossing on the southern arm of the junction, however I appreciate there may be technical limitations preventing this.
Widened footway
The current absence of a proper pavement in the area between the two sides of the entrance to the school is a major problem for anyone walking along Boscathnoe Lane, especially for wheelchair users or people pushing prams. Currently pedestrians have to choose between walking out into the road around the parked cars, navigating between the cars and the signs etc on ‘island’, or defying the “No Entry” signs and following the only available proper pavement which leads all the way around and into and back out of the school grounds.
The creation of a footway that runs in a straight line along Boscathnoe Lane where it passes the school is long overdue and will greatly improve pedestrian safety and comfort in that area. It will also provide a safe walking route along the desire line for any children accessing sports activities after school and walking past the school towards Madron Road after finishing their activities.
I note that this element is labelled confusingly on the drawings, as this would actually create a new footway. The raised ‘island’ area that is there currently does not function as a footway, due to the school’s signs and a plant pot being located on either end of it, making it inaccessible. In any case this land belongs to the school and is not part of the public highway.
New, raised pedestrian crossing x 2
These seem relatively uncontroversial although I am not convinced they are absolutely necessary, considering the amount of use they are likely to get at busy times. They may also create an unnecessary additional obstacle for bus drivers who already have a tricky time navigating this area. Please could designers consider this factor, and also consider whether there are places where these raised crossings (or the funding associated with them) might be more usefully deployed elsewhere within the scope of this scheme.
New landscaped area with seating
I have three major concerns about this element:
1) The “build-out” function of the landscaped area
My understanding is that the landscaped area is supposed to function as a give-way/build-out and designed to slow the traffic. However, the speed of traffic on Boscathnoe Lane outside the school has not been raised with me as an issue, either by residents or school leadership. This is likely because there is no reason for anyone to cross the road here. Rather, the main issue here is congestion at the start and end of the school day and the difficulty of fitting all the school buses into this space, alongside traffic, both moving and stationary. The proposed build-out will seriously exacerbate the existing problem with bus manoeuvrability. This element needs to be removed.
2) Loss of parking.
Lack of parking availability is already a major concern for residents and I cannot accept parking being removed without a serious justification.
The area where the footway and landscaping are proposed is currently used as informal (“illegal”) parking by residents and school staff. The area is marked as a bus bay but does not actually serve any buses or purpose other than parking.
If the proposed landscaped area and benches are removed from the scheme, I believe a modest sized pavement could be introduced adjacent to the island, while retaining and formalising the parking space adjacent to this, and still allowing adequate space for the buses to move past.
I am not persuaded that justification exists to remove the parking here. For this same reason I also oppose the introduction of addition of new yellow lines on either side.
3) Location of the landscaped area, seating and bike stand and repair station.
This proposal - locating benches and other amenities on an island area in the middle of the road - appears to be encouraging children to spend time on the island. This would require them to cross the road from the two pavements adjacent to the school – where they are currently safe – onto the island. Encouraging the children to move between the pavements and the island would create additional occurrences of children crossing and create new opportunities for accidents to occur, especially at the end of the school day when this whole area becomes an area of heightened risk. I have serious concerns about the wisdom of doing this. In my opinion we should be encouraging children to get swiftly onto their buses and moved away from the area, instead of giving them a reason to linger and move around among the buses (both moving and stationary).
If there is a need for children to sit on benches after school, these would be more appropriately located on the school side where they wouldn’t need to cross a road in front of or behind the buses. Bike parking is already available on the school grounds. Has a safeguarding review been conducted in association with this aspect of the scheme?
A further concern arising from this proposal is that if the school children decide to spend their after school time dwelling there at the end of the day, and it becomes the “place to be”, this could create potential discord with non-school pedestrians making their way along the pavement. It is well-documented fact that elderly residents in particular are likely – rightly or wrongly – to feel intimidated by groups of teenagers “hanging around”. I would not support a proposal that created the conditions for such discord to arise, with no justification.
Site Notice 2 – Poltair Terrace
Road narrowed with priority, New landscaped area with seating, New build-out with pedestrian crossing
I will consider these three points together as they are all part of the same thing.
I cannot support this build-out here. The Madron Road/Joseph’s Lane intersection is a very sensitive junction that just about works as it is. School buses, municipal buses, school traffic, general traffic, agricultural vehicles, cyclists, horse riders and pedestrians all have to navigate it and at peak times (school drop off and pick up) it becomes congested and challenging. I appreciate that the rationale for the road narrowing is to slow the traffic, but I have serious concerns about its proximity to the junction. The potential for this measure to exacerbate congestion and cause drivers to behave erratically (e.g. mounting the kerb, turning in the road/people’s driveways, etc) makes it impractical and potentially dangerous, especially for vulnerable road users.
(NB: If there is seating available I would like to see a replacement bench for the one that was moved from outside the allotments when it came to the end of its life last year. Such a bench would benefit those children who walk home along Joseph’s Lane or wait there to be picked up by parents. It would also benefit residents, who greatly valued the old bench that was there previously and has yet to be replaced by Cornwall Council after it was decommissioned.)
Regarding the crossing point, I would welcome one of these somewhere along this stretch of road, but its location will depend on other factors and there needs to be more detailed discussions about this.
Widened footway
The excessively narrow nature of the pavement on the western side of this road means is too narrow to be used safely by wheelchair users, people pushing pushchairs, or any pedestrian to walk past another. Another major problem here - strongly articulated by residents – is the speeding traffic, mostly coming down the hill.
The obvious choice would have been to widen the pavement on the western side, but I understand there are potential issues with drainage and flooding, as some houses there sit below the water table. However I do not agree that it therefore follows that we should widen the pavement on the eastern side, which is not particularly narrow and where pedestrians are already protected in many parts by the presence of parked cars. Widening the pavement on that side would narrow the road and risk pushing traffic towards pedestrians on the other side, who are already extremely vulnerable and under pressure due to the very narrow pavement.
I would like designers to consider some alternative proposals to address this issue. One possibility could include flipping the parking to the other side of the road, or flipping just some of it, to create a chicane. Another might be to widen only the northernmost part of western pavement, where the houses sit clear of the water table.
The location of the new crossing point on this stretch of road would need to be considered in the context of these possible interventions. Any chicanes introduced would need to take into account the need for buses to get through safely, bearing in mind potential visibility issues.
I am very keen for us to find a means of slowing traffic here that protect pedestrians, preserve residents’ parking and doesn’t create flood risk or congestion issues. I believe this is possibility with creativity and collaborative working.
New enlarged pedestrian island
I welcome the proposal for a general tidying up of this rather neglected-looking crossing island. The crossing is located near a tricky junction where traffic sometimes approaches at speed. I understand a speed hump here was rejected due to its potential to cause drainage issues – I therefore ask you to consider speed cushions slightly further up the road instead.
Concerns have been expressed by bus drivers that enlarging the island excessively may create problems with buses turning left out of Parc Letta. Please could this be considered in the final designs.
That concludes my point by point assessment. I have asked for several things to be removed from the scheme, namely both the proposed build-outs, the benches (bar one) and the bike rack. With this in mind I’d like to request that where the savings have been made from the removal of those, the residual funding be directed towards traffic calming or improvements to the crossing points at the south end of Madron Road, where it meets the roundabout. Cars come off the roundabout at speed, meaning crossing from the western side to the underpass on the eastern side can be quite hazardous. There is also a need to review the absence of dropped kerbs in this area, which should allow mobility scooter users to safely exit the road to access the underpass. This is an area that is used daily by children on their walk to school, so ought to meet the criteria for the funding.
If funds remain available after that, please consider measures to address traffic speeds on Joseph’s Lane, which is also used by school children.
Thank you for your attention. I look forward to seeing Cornwall Council delivering a scheme that works for everyone who lives, works and studies in Heamoor.