Agenda and minutes

RESOLVED: That all items be considered in public.

Councillors Brian Stead, George Cooper and Judith Cooper attended the meeting and Councillor Stead spoke on behalf of the Ward Councillors in support of the petition. 

Presentations were received from teachers and students.  Concerns, comments and suggestions raised at the meeting included the following:

• Mr Peter Lang, Headteacher at Uxbridge High School, advised that the school had concerns regarding road safety in the community which gave rise to the submission of the petition;
• The Petition Hearing and the improvements that had been made by the school had been mentioned in the local newspaper this week;
• The Council’s School Travel Plan team was praised for the contribution it had made to improving safety.  The school’s Travel Plan had introduced supervised dismissal between 3.05pm and 3.15pm and changed the traffic light sequence on the A4020, which had reduced the number of accidents involving students;
• Currently, the amount of time given for pedestrians to cross to the centre island on the A4020 was adequate on one side and not long enough on the other.  It was suggested that further work be undertaken to synchronise the traffic lights to allow more time for pedestrians to cross the road;
• The school was attended by students from a wide area, with a large proportion arriving from the A4020 end of The Greenway.  Approximately 350 students travelled to and from the school on the bus and therefore had to cross the A4020 every day;
• Four students from the school had died at the junction in the last 10 years – although three of these had been older students, the most recent had been a Year 7 pupil;
• The traffic calming put in place in The Greenway had greatly improved safety for pedestrians;
• A request was made that consideration be given to improved signage and a reduction in the speed limit along The Greenway and the A4020;
• Students requested that consideration be given to implementing a one way system, building a pedestrian bridge over the A4020 or building an underpass.  It was suggested that S106 funding be secured from the development of the RAF Uxbridge site to contribute towards a bridge or a underpass;
• Although there were times when students had not waited for the green man, there were also occasions where drivers had sped through red lights and had put pedestrians in danger;
• One student had been hit by a car on the crossing six months previously when he had rushed to cross the road in time to catch his bus.  He had broken his leg in two places, stayed in hospital for a few days and then been off school for a few weeks as a result of his injuries;
• It was suggested that the barriers be extended along the pavement on the corner of The Greenway to deter pedestrians from crossing at points other than the crossing; and
• Other suggestions to improve safety included the removal of the centre island to enable pedestrians to cross the whole road in one go and the provision of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 2.