Agenda item

The Cabinet Member considered a petition from residents raising safety concerns when exiting Ninth Avenue on to Longmead Road, Hayes. The Lead Petitioner was in attendance and made the following points: 

·       Exiting Ninth Avenue onto Longmead Road was extremely dangerous due to very poor visibility;

·       The yellow lines on the corner had been re-painted but cars still parked on them;

·       At times residents had been obliged to call out the out of hours Traffic Warden because people had parked on the double yellow lines. The illegally parked cars restricted the road making it difficult for emergency vehicles to pass / gain access;

·       Mirrors were requested to aid visibility;

·       A large car was often parked in the disabled parking space on the corner which further restricted visibility.

Ward Councillor Allen was in attendance and spoke in support of the petitioners making the following points:

·       Double yellow lines on the corner of the junction were largely ignored;

·       A large number of vans were often parked along Longmead Road thereby restricting visibility;

·       Cars tended to speed around the corner adding to the danger;

·       Nearby Central Avenue was a 20mph zone while the smaller roads, including Longmead and Ninth Avenue, were 30mph zones. This seemed illogical and 20mph zones were requested along all the smaller avenues in the area.

Ward Councillor Curling was also in attendance and highlighted the following concerns:

·       The roads in the area were very narrow;

·       The main concern was the lack of visibility when exiting Ninth Avenue into Longmead Road – it was a miracle that there had been no serious accidents to date;

·       A mirror appeared to be a good solution as they seemed to work well in other locations;

·       The extension of the double yellow lines on the corners and speed limits of 20mph along the smaller roads were suggested as possible solutions.

The Cabinet Member and the Traffic, Parking, Road Safety and School Travel Team Manager listened to the concerns of the petitioners and were keen to mitigate the issues raised.

The Cabinet Member commented that there were some very large bushes on the corner of Ninth Avenue / Longmead Road which further restricted visibility. It was suggested that the Green Spaces team be requested to cut these back if they fell within the remit of the Council; if not, residents should be requested to do this. The petitioners were informed that, unfortunately, mirrors could not be used in this location as they would be in contravention of Department of Transport regulations. Moreover, regrettably 20mph speed limit zones would not be helpful as these were not enforceable (Councillor Allen questioned this statement and asked officers to check its validity). The Cabinet Member recommended that the double yellow lines already in place on the corners of Ninth Avenue be extended further – a consultation process would be required prior to implementing this. It was noted that ‘Concealed Entrance’ signs could also be helpful in this location. Officers were requested to conduct a thorough site visit, consider all the possible options and prepare a design for the consideration of the Cabinet Member.

RESOLVED: That the Cabinet Member for Public Safety and Transport:

1.    met with petitioners and listened to their road safety concerns and suggestions for improving egress from Ninth Avenue on to Longmead Road, Hayes;

2.    advised petitioners that their request for a mirror opposite Ninth Avenue was regrettably not feasible for the reasons set out in the report;

3.    asked officers to undertake further detailed investigation on other possible mitigation measures and then to report back to the Cabinet Member and Ward Councillors; and

4.    asked officers to speak to colleagues in Green Spaces / local residents to request that the aforementioned bushes be cut back to aid visibility.

Reasons for decisions

The petition hearing provided a valuable opportunity to hear directly from the petitioners on their concerns and suggestions.

Alternative options considered / risk management

None at this stage.