A PARENT has expressed her frustration as planned road safety measures have not been delivered near a Wokingham School for over a year.
Joanne Peters, whose name has been changed, said plans for a permanent toucan crossing on Biggs Lane, a busy road north of Farley Hill Primary School, have not materialised.
She believes the current provision is a ‘dereliction of duty’ on Wokingham Borough Council’s behalf and fears for the safety of students, one of whom is her daughter.
“Nothing has progressed in the last year,” she said. “The buck stops with the council.”
After initially reaching out to the council in March 2021, Ms Peters received confirmation that a permanent toucan crossing would be built.
The council stated the responsibility to install it lay with the developer Crest Nicholson.
Ms Peters said: “This has been going on for years, there was never any plan.
“The council has not obliged Crest Nicholson to do anything under the planning terms.”
The council confirmed that signage and markings would be handled by its traffic management team.
Street markings have since been painted on Baston Road and a temporary crossing was put in place on Biggs Lane.
However, Ms Peters is not convinced that this is sufficient and believes further safety precautions should be implemented, including crossing signage, street markings on Biggs Lane and a 20mph zone.
She believes traffic on the Biggs Lane is going ‘50 percent faster than what it should be’, saying vehicles should not be travelling at 30mph so close to a school.
“To say it’s safe is not the case,” Ms Peters said.
Crest Nicholson confirmed it is currently carrying out preparatory works for the installation of the crossing on Biggs Lane.
A spokesperson for the developer said: “These works will take around 3 weeks to complete, with the temporary lights remaining in place until the crossing is completely installed.
“The installation is currently planned for early December due to equipment manufacturing delays.
Executive member for active travel, transport and highways, Paul Fishwick, said the council had been working with Crest Nicholson and its contractor on plans for the new crossing, which he expects to start ‘soon’.
He explained: “For the past year, Crest has provided a temporary crossing on Biggs Lane near to the junction of Baston Road.
“This crossing is activated by a push button and provides a controlled safe place to cross Biggs Lane. It will remain in place until the permanent crossing is installed and operational.”
