You will note that the footpath stops on one side of this busy road and then resumes on the other. Brigg Garden Centre is in the near distance beyond the trees in the middle of our image.
The road is not straight at this point - making it difficult for pedestrians to spot what's coming - and approaching vehicles are going at a fair speed, this being open countryside and not a built-up area.
Many people walk from Brigg to shop at the garden centre. They need to know it is safe to cross.
The recently introduced 50mph speed limited (seen on the sign above) is very welcome. But would a new pelican crossing, or even a pedestrian island midway across be justified at the spot where pedestrians have to relocate from one path to the other?
This is very, very close to the border between North Lincolnshire Council and Lincolnshire County Council.
The signage on our picture would suggest the path-swapping location is just on the Brigg side of the county boundary. But such signs do not always give an entirely accurate indication of the border (e.g. the Scawby Brook board located before the bridge on Bridge Street, Brigg).
We 'road tested' the existing crossing place on the A1084 yesterday and did not consider it ideal, even on a summer's afternoon in very good light.
What must it be like on on a dull day during autumn or winter?
There may well be "criteria" - a commonly-used word in local government - set down for the number of pedestrians using a crossing place before a pelican or island refuge can be justified. If so, we might struggle in terms of on-foot shopper numbers.
However, we think this unusual location near an out-of-town retail complex might be seen as a special case, in view of the local circumstances that prevail.
No comments:
Post a Comment