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Road in Leigh to become permanent ‘school street’
A ROAD safety scheme, which sees roads outside two schools closed during drop-off and pick-up time, is set to be made permanent after a successful trial.
Ronald Hill Grove, in Leigh, will now become a permanent “School Street” to ensure the safety of children at both West Leigh Junior School and West Leigh Infant School.
‘School Streets’, which began in April 2021, saw barriers and cones put in place to prevent cars from driving past the schools at the allocated times.
Steven Wakefield, councillor responsible for, highways, transport and parking, said: “Lots of people have been asking about school streets because it’s safer for children. It comes down to an inconsiderate minority who won’t park considerately around schools.
“We’ve been horrified to see people are still parking on yellow zig-zag lines outside schools.
“It’s all about the safety of the children. I’m glad to see they have been welcomed in those areas and now will come to pass for the people that need them.
“We’ve applied for moving traffic cameras. That’s all gone through and the council are applying to the Government for moving traffic orders. When we get that it will enable us to do school streets a lot quicker and easier.”
A public consultation, which was carried out between October to November, saw 86 per cent of the 244 responses say they would support the implementation of the School Streets Scheme permanently.
77 per cent of participants agreed the scheme has created a healthier environment, whilst 71 per cent agreed it had also encouraged them to leave the car at home.
Greenways Primary School, in Greenways, and Bournes Green Infants and Bournes Green Junior School, both in Ladram Road, Thorpe Bay have also trialled the scheme alongside Leigh’s North Street Primary School and Shoebury’s Richmond Primary School, in Richmond Avenue.
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