WHY is Bury Council willing to waste money on traffic-calming measures in residential areas where the road layouts of such areas dictate that traffic is already relatively calm?

As a resident of the Church Meadow estate in Unsworth, I have been angered by the local authority’s proposal for a StreetSafe scheme in the area.

The council’s comments in the Bury Times (February 4) did not wash with me. It stated: “The initiative was introduced four years ago to improve safety for pedestrians in residential streets and estates”. 

My point is the scheme is not required as there are no issues with pedestrian safety.

Church Meadow is an estate with narrow meandering roads, and, in particular on St George’s Road, is full of parked cars. Such a layout and such obstructions force drivers to take greater care and less speed to negotiate the ‘highway’.

Wasting money on such schemes only sparks anger at the council. If they can afford to use funds in this unnecessary way, why can’t they find the money to fill in potholes along main roads such as Hollins Lane, off which Church Meadow is situated?

The state of that road is appalling and, as such, puts at risk the safety of pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.

I understand the issue of potholes and the issue of StreetSafe schemes may well be separate. What I would like to see is a StreetSafe scheme implemented in a more worthy area.

If the council is running out of potential sites for traffic-calming measures, then whatever money is leftover in the StreetSafe pot should be handed back to where it came from or utilised for something necessary, such as the complete resurfacing of Hollins Lane, from the junction of Croft Lane to its transition into Parr Lane.

Stop wasting money, Bury Council!

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