Controversial plans for crossing and one-way system scrapped

Controversial proposals to change the current layout of the road system in the Knutsford Road area have been scrapped by Cheshire East Council.

Having met with the management team and PTA at Lindow Community Primary School, who raised concerns over the safety of children attending the school, Cheshire East Highways identified a need for a signal controlled crossing for pedestrians.

They put forward plans for installing a new Puffin crossing, close to the junctions with Church Road, Upcast Lane and Gravel Lane, and introducing a one way system on Church Road from the entrance off Knutsford Road to the junction with St Johns Road. Highways said this was required due to reduced visibility for motorists once the crossing has been built.

They also proposed relocating the bus stop lay-by that is currently on Knutsford Road to Gravel Lane to make way for the new Puffin crossing.

However, the plans were met with opposition from some local business owners, their customers and some residents. As a result a petition containing 493 signatures has been submitted to Cheshire East Council calling for them to abandon the proposals and use any allocated funding to introduce traffic calming measures and improve signage instead.

Wilmslow Town Council also objected to the proposals from Cheshire East Highways because they felt they were not acceptable in their current form and require further consultation.

Having considered the responses to the consultation Cheshire East Council has confirmed that the proposed changes have been abandoned.

Councillor Rod Menlove told wilmslow.co.uk "The responses to the Highways informal consultation show a clear majority against the proposal for a pedestrian crossing and the resultant one way system. The purpose of the consultation was to canvass the opinions of residents and it is good that so many responded. As such, we accept that response as a decision. The proposals have been put to one side and there will be no further consultation."

He added "However, this still leaves the situation of a road that can be dangerous to cross, particularly for pupils at Lindow Primary School, but here are a couple of options worth considering.

"The first is a school crossing patrol for mornings and afternoons. Volunteers are never easy to find but experience elsewhere shows that the best route is to talk to parents or the relatives of parents. This is best done by the school and we would ask that they adopt this as a project.

"The second is to have 20mph morning and afternoon restrictions as is the case in Gravel Lane. Cheshire East has a 3 year roll out programme for such 20mph for all schools in the borough. We will make the case that Lindow deserves a high priority and make every effort to have it installed during this school year."

Graham Hurd, who has run the village store on Knutsford Road with his partner Kate for the past 14 years, started the petition because he was concerned the proposals would affect the future viability of his business by taking away all of their passing trade and inconvenience residents of Church Road, Links Road and Welton Drive because of the increased in traffic from customers and suppliers using the one-way system.

Additionally many residents felt the proposals were ill-conceived and didn't address the real problem of speeding traffic on Knutsford Road.

Graham said "Kate and I are obviously pleased that good sense has prevailed and the Council have scrapped these proposals and we would like to thank all of our customers and the local residents for their support.

"We are as concerned as everyone for the safety of the school children and everyone who needs to cross the road near to our store and we are pleased that the Council are now considering the options of a school crossing patrol and a 20mph speed restriction at times when parents and their children are going to and leaving the school with the aim to implement the measures during this school year.

"However, we still think there is a need to address the issue of deterring drivers who persist in driving at 40-50 mph + through this residential area at all times of the day by installing speed camera warning signs in conjunction with either fixed speed cameras or increased use of mobile speed cameras."

Speaking about the response to the proposals, Zoe Wilson, Headteacher at Lindow Community Primary School, said "We were delighted when Cheshire East councillors attended a recent Governors' meeting to tell us the engineers at the council had investigated the issues and were proposing a plan to fund a Puffin Crossing. However, we understand that, during the recent public consultation about the crossing and the changes that would be made to the local road system, there has been objections and issues raised from within the local community.

"As a school, our primary concern is for the safety of our pupils, but we also recognise and understand the objections that have been raised to the plan. We have been heartened by the many supportive comments from the local community on social media stating that children's safety is of paramount importance.

"We would welcome any further discussion about any crossing solutions that the Highways Team at the council might put forward as an alternative workable option. We sincerely hope that there may be a compromise that would improve the dangerous situation for Lindow pupils, but mitigate the issues and concerns raised by our neighbours and local businesses to the current plan."

Do you agree with the Council's decision to abandon their proposals? WHat, if anything do you think should be done to change the current situation on Knutsford Road? Share your views via the comment box below.

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