Town councillors have supported the headteacher of Keswick School in his plea to make Crosthwaite Road a safer place for pupils to cross.
Mr Jackson had come up with a three-point plan to protect the children who cross the increasingly busy road and urged the town council to contact Cumberland Council with a view to getting the highways authority to consider the following actions as a matter of priority:
l Install a pedestrian crossing: a dedicated crossing, ideally with traffic lights or a zebra crossing, would offer children a safe way to cross the road during busy school hours.
l Improved signage and road markings: Clearer signage for both drivers and pedestrians, coupled with road markings to indicate a safe crossing point, would help to ensure greater awareness of the risks and encourage more careful driving around the school.
l Traffic calming measures: The introduction of speeds humps or other traffic calming measures would slow down vehicles, especially at key times such as school opening and closing hours.
Cllr Claire Peat said that a precedent had been set in Whitehaven where a pedestrian crossing had been installed near St Benedict’s School recently. She said it has an A road at the back of the school and the crossing had been put there to ensure the safety of children.
Council clerk Vivien Little said that Cumberland Council was looking at introducing 20mph limits in Keswick next year and Cllr Louise Dunn said these had made a big difference in Wales.
Ms Little said: “I would suggest that the town council and I write to officers that I know to be involved at Cumberland Council to say that we wholeheartedly support this.”
It was agreed that this action be taken.
