Safety fears have led concerned residents of Keswick to call for a new school crossing.
A petition which has already gained 1,128 signatures, will be brought to Cumbria County Council’s Local Committee for Allerdale on Wednesday, calling on the council to create a pedestrian crossing outside Keswick School.
The petition, launched by one of the parents of Keswick School, Sue McCauley, has received the backing of county and Keswick Town councillors alike, as well as the school’s headmaster, Simon Jackson.
In the petition to Cumbria County Council, Sue said: “At the moment the main traffic and pedestrian entrance to Keswick School is situated on a bend on a very major road.
“With dozens of coaches coming in and out of the entrance as well as parents cars pulling up alongside the kerbs on double yellows and hundreds of schoolchildren starting their day, it is a recipe for a serious and significant accident waiting to happen.”
She added: “The children are crossing from a shop with traffic in both directions with no crossing guard or pelican or zebra crossing.”
She believes that putting a school crossing in place on the road could “potentially save a child’s life”.
Member of Keswick Town Council David Burn will join Sue at the meeting on Wednesday and he has been an advocate for a school crossing for some time.
He said: “It’s a fast road that links to the A66 and changes speed quickly.
“Keswick Town Council has unanimously supported the request for a pedestrian crossing. The headteacher at the school has contacted me over the years saying ‘we’ve got concerns getting the kids from one side of the road to the other where there’s a bus stop and a garage that the kids go to at lunch time’.”
Councillor Burn said: “It is something that’s important for the town, for Keswick.”
Cumbria County Council member for Keswick Tony Lywood will be in attendance at the meeting this week.
Speaking on Friday, he said: “As a county councillor, I thoroughly support it. That area is a problem for speed and a pedestrian crossing is certainly fitting.”
He agreed that the road could be dangerous for pupils without action to mitigate speed.
“It’s a concern for parents, it’s a concern for residents and for the school itself. It’s something we’d like to see.”
Commenting on the petition, Janet Madden said: “Without a safe crossing on this busy junction this is, unfortunately an accident waiting to happen.”
