A new £10,000 pedestrian refuge island crossing will make people safer and promote cycling and walking, says the councillor who used his allocated fund to pay for it.
Cllr Andrew Cross visited the site of the new refuge pedestrian crossing point in Ankerage Green in Warndon Villages in Worcester on Thursday as contractors renewed the white lines at the junction with Millwood Drive.
Cllr Cross, a Green Party county councillor for Warndon Villages, said the route is well used by residents, including parents and children at Lyppard Grange Primary School.
The crossing at the junction is also used by people heading to and from shops and the post office in Ankerage Green or the Tesco supermarket in Millwood Drive.
Its introduction has been welcomed by the community, reflected by the comments made in the Warndon Villages Community Group Facebook page as members have described the refuge as ‘brilliant’, ‘definitely needed’ and ‘fantastic’.
WELCOMED: The new pedestrian refuge in Ankerage Green in Warndon Villages in Worcester has been paid for via Cllr Andrew Cross’s council fund (Image: James Connell/Newsquest)
Cllr Cross said he identified the need for the refuge in part because of his own observations of the junction and that people had since told him it was ‘long overdue’.
In particular, he said the junction had a very wide splay, making it more challenging for people to cross the road safely in one go. With the new refuge, people can cross to the middle of the road before crossing the rest of the way more safely.
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“It’s a big distance for somebody to cross, especially somebody with mobility issues and people with young children who take longer to cross. People have to cross Ankerage Green at some point to get to the school. It’s for the whole community and is a measure for community safety.
“I’ve already noticed that drivers entering the junction are travelling at a more appropriate speed, much slower as they enter Ankerage Green,” he said.
However, Cllr Cross, who often cycles around Warndon Villages, says he can also see other benefits for health and the environment if people feel more confident to engage in active travel.
“People have a right to feel safe where they live and, if people feel unsafe walking or cycling, they will add to congestion by driving or taking taxis. I want people to be able to choose how they move. I think the metric for road safety should not just be injury or accident rates but pulse rates. It’s about how safe do people feel,” he said.
The refuge complements two school warning signs installed on Millwood Drive two years ago, also paid for via Cllr Cross’s council fund.
