Traffic chaos fears over new academy
RESIDENTS fear their quiet neighbourhood will be overrun with vehicles when a new school opens nearby.
Families in Beddow Way, Chell, are concerned the street will become a drop off zone for parents taking their children to the Ormiston Horizon Academy when the new building off Turnhurst Road opens next year.
Previous attempts to install parking restrictions almost ended with double yellow lines being painted in the cul-de-sac but were later dropped.
Craig Gibson, aged 29, said: "The problem is the road is perfect for parents wanting to drop their kids off at school but it's a small road and if anybody starts parking here, we're not going to be able to get off our drives.
Business Cards From Only £10.95 Delivered www.myprint-247.co.uk
View detailsOur heavyweight cards have FREE UV silk coating, FREE next day delivery & VAT included. Choose from 1000's of pre-designed templates or upload your own artwork. Orders dispatched within 24hrs.
Terms: Visit our site for more products: Business Cards, Compliment Slips, Letterheads, Leaflets, Postcards, Posters & much more. All items are free next day delivery. www.myprint-247.co.uk
Contact: 01858 468192
Valid until: Sunday, May 26 2013
"The petition we signed first of all was to get some kind of parking restriction in place but it ended up being for double yellow lines, which people were surprised by.
"We had to get another petition together to stop them being put in because that would have made life very difficult. Visitors wouldn't have been able to park here and might have been forced to park miles away."
A second petition asking Stoke-on-Trent City Council to call off the contractors just days before the work was due to start proved successful.
But residents say there is still a need for some restrictions.
Sheila Parkinson, aged 65, said the situation needed to be resolved sooner rather than later.
The former council worker added: "All we want is parking restrictions during school pick-up times, but somehow this hasn't happened. We need to sort it out as a matter of urgency.
"The idea of double yellow lines is crazy because it won't help anybody living here, it'll make life very difficult."
Husband Les, aged 70, said: "The aim is to stop parents parking in the street, not people that live here.
"We have no concerns about living next to a school because there's always been one there."
Councillor Ruth Rosenau, Stoke-on-Trent City Council cabinet member for regeneration, planning and transportation, said the council had worked hard to help residents.
She said: "We received a petition for double yellow lines on Beddow Way last November.
"Having listened to residents' concerns, we programmed in work to install the lines. However, within days of the start date of the work, we received a second petition from residents, in June this year, saying that they didn't want double yellow lines. "We listened again to residents, and called off the work, despite the fact that contractors were already appointed and due to carry it out. If residents have further concerns, they need to write formally to the council's traffic management section, and an assessment will be carried out."
The academy's new £22 million building is due to open next September. It will cater for 1,050 students.
Comments
by amartinone
Friday, September 14 2012, 5:40PM
“I thought all new-build schools were meant to have designated drop-off areas within the grounds. If not they should!”
by Havark
Friday, September 14 2012, 11:12AM
“Permits would be a good idea? and then they can be given out by the people that live on the street to friends and family, but i completely agree with what is been said.”