Campaigners are calling on East Sussex County Council to improve the safety of a pedestrian route often used by Lewes school children.
In an online petition hosted on the county council’s own website, campaigners are calling on the authority to either approve and fund the installation of a pedestrian crossing on Offham Road or else take other steps to improve road safety.
The petition notes particular concerns about the safety of an informal crossing at the top of the Piggy Steps — a section of staircase linking Blois Road to Offham Road and then connects on to a route to Hill Road.
Petitioners say this route is ‘regularly used by schoolchildren’.
The petition reads: “Parents, teachers, and residents have raised repeated concerns about the danger children face when crossing. Some families are choosing longer walking routes or resorting to driving short distances to avoid the hazard, increasing local congestion.”
It adds: “The lack of a safe crossing on Offham Road poses a daily risk to children and families. Installing a pedestrian crossing will reduce danger, encourage sustainable travel, and improve the wellbeing of the community.”
The petition goes on to argue that the council should look at several different options, including the potential of employing a school crossing patrol.
As an alternative measure, the petition also argues the council should look into ways to reduce the road’s speed limit from 40mph to 30mph, while also installing Radar Activated Speed Signs and a crossing island.
Petitioners argue a crossing in the area would also encourage more parents to use the route, while also acting as “a natural traffic-calming measure, slowing vehicles entering the town.”
The online petition can be found here: https://democracy.eastsussex.gov.uk/mgEPetitionDisplay.aspx?ID=47&RPID=545740298&HPID=545740298
It is expected to run until the end of this year. At time of publication it has attracted more than 260 signatures.
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