A campaign to install anti-speeding equipment on one of Keswick’s busiest main roads has failed – despite community support and the backing of both town’s MP and the county’s police and crime commissioner.
Keswick mayor Cllr David Burn had led the campaign for a SID – Speed Indication Device – to be positioned on High Hill beside Keswick School where he says data collection showed that almost 200 drivers a day were exceeding the speed at which they could be prosecuted.
The dual campaign had been successful in calling for a SID to also be installed at Chestnut Hill on the A591 in Keswick, with Cumbria County Council having already agreed to that request. The Chestnut Hill SID has been paid for by Keswick Community Asset Company, which runs the town’s pay-to-use public toilets, and is expected to be installed by the county council shortly.
However, Cllr Burn this week admitted defeat in the High Hill half of the campaign, which he began in 2014. He said: “Despite wide community support and further support from Trudy Harrison MP, Peter McCall (Cumbria’s police and crime commissioner), and neighbouring parish councils, I heard this week that our request is still not supported – despite the fact that during the data collection period, almost 200 vehicles a day were exceeding the limit at which prosecution could have taken place.
“I have nowhere else to go with my request for a SID at the 30mph gateway on High Hill towards the town centre beside Vicarage Hill, so I am not taking the campaign any further. I am happy to report, however, that those considering my requests have said they support my back-up plan of installing rumble strips at this location.”
The mayor, in his weekly update during the coronavirus lockdown, spoke of his sorrow at the cancellation of the town’s planned VE75 street party in Market Square on the May bank holiday. “It is a great shame that the town’s celebrations cannot go ahead as planned. The national newspapers are suggesting that some of the lockdown may be relaxed from next week but we have only rumours at the moment so we all need to stay safe by sticking to the present rules,” he added.
