Road safety in Nordelph
In past updates to the website, we have reported (with gory picture) on the hit-and-run accident sustained by Des Andrew on Silt Road. Since then, road safety has been a topic of conversation at both the Parish Council meeting and the Communications Group meeting. Clearly, road safety is becoming an issue. Many suggestions have been made -- some realistic and well-supported, others simply changes to dream about. This page begins the debate, by listing some of the proposals.
A1122 Speed limits
At present, the limit on traffic travelling between Downham and Outwell is 40mph. There is evidence from a recent traffic census that 90% of the traffic obeys this. In other words, one car in 10 exceeds the limit! Were Nordelph in Suffolk, the County Council policy that all villages had a restriction of 30mph would apply, and there is wide support for such a limit.
It is acknowledged that a 30mph limit would also be regularly exceeded, but the feeling is that the average speeds would be reduced.
Consequences of the high speeds on this section of the road include potentially dangerous situations where vehicles enter the A1122 for Downham, having begun their manoeuvre with no traffic in sight coming from Outwell, to discover a speeding car coming too fast up behind them while they are themselves still gaining speed. Also, the presence of a heavy, speeding lorry on one's tail encourages traffic turning over the bridge off the A1122 to take the turn too fast and not leave enough reaction time should there be traffic emerging, blind, from High Street.
Possibilities:
Reduction to 30mph throughout the village.
Increasing the extent of the present restriction, with a stepped reduction through 40mph to 30mph in the village.
High Street/Birchfield Road
The speed limit here is 30mph. The recently observed terror of children playing 'chicken' in High Street speaks for itself. Travelling the length of this road at 30mph rather than 20mph must save -- oh, 10 seconds!
Possibilities:
Reduction to 20mph.
Silt Road
At present, Silt Road is unrestricted (that means 60mph, by the way!) until almost at Coronation Avenue. While the road is largely straight and with good visibility, there are isolated clumps of housing fronting the road.
Possibilities:
Reduction of the 40mph to 30mph.
Extension of the restricted section further out of the village.
A limit (40mph? 50mph?) along the entire length of Silt Road.
Footpaths
It seems absurd to many of us that we live in a village where visiting the Post Office involves walking along a dangerous main road without footpaths. We all welcome the new footpath in the Outwell direction, by why isn't there one in the opposite direction?
Possibilities:
A footpath extending out of the village towards Downham.
A new footbridge across Well Creek opposite the Post Office, allowing cyclists and pedestrians to reach it without exposing themselves to the risks of walking along the A1122.
Developing the bridleway along the south bank of Well Creek, so that it becomes a feasible pedestrian and cycleway into Downham.
Enforcement
Regardless of any other changes, there is no overt policing of even the existing limits. The general feeling is that speed cameras, or the more driver-friendly electronic speed advisory signs, do have an effect.
Possibilities:
Speed cameras on both A1122 approaches to Nordelph and Silt Road.
Speed signs in the same places.
Why nothing has been done
Amazingly, the principal reason is because we haven't had any fatalities or serious accidents. Residents point to the number of 'less serious' accidents, and generally feel that there is a fatality waiting to happen. But we cannot be unrealistic -- even apparently simple changes have significant costs in new signage, legal changes, public advertisement and resolution of objections. Were we to install speed detectors, part at least of the cost would be borne by the parish -- possibly all of it unless we get that fatality that the Highways department seem to want.
What we can do
In the short term, make a lot of noise! We can collect the views and the wishes of the residents, pressure the various Councils involved (the Parish Council have been pressing for safety improvements for many years) and generally make our feelings felt.
Start the process now! E-mail us your comments on info@nordelph.org now and we'll start an on-line debate.