The safety of informal crossings has been discussed in the House of Lords.

The Heart of Hackbridge scheme has been controversial since it was first built last year, with parents, residents, opposition members and disability groups all speaking out against the new road layout incorporated into the scheme.

On Thursday, January 8, the battle stopped being a local issue as the matter of shared crossings, a key element of the new layout, was taken up in the House of Lords after safety fears saw three other local authorities scrap them.

Opponents to the crossings say they no longer give pedestrians priority and instead rely on motorists deciding to stop, creating problems particularly for children, who may not been seen, and disabled users.

Baroness Kramer took questions on the “folly” and “health and safety disasters” after Lord McAvoy asked what the impact of shared space crossings were on the safety of people with a disability.

Sutton’s £1.4m development has already come under fire from visually impaired groups who said they are scared of using the crossings for fear of being hit.

The Baroness heard from the House that there was widespread anxiety in communities surrounding the impact of shared spaces and that Blackpool, Gloucestershire and Warwickshire councils had all performed “u-turns” of their schemes and decided to scrap them.

After the debate, Baroness Kramer pledged to visit one of the controversial sites to gain see first-hand the impact on the disabled.

She told the House: “The design is for local authorities to determine and all councils are now being issued with guidelines from the Federation of the Blind in order to create spaces suitable for all.

“Well designed shared spaces can work.”

She added that schemes that have removed kerbs were proving popular with wheelchair users

 

There were at least two incidents last week involving pedestrians being knocked over by vehicles on shared spaces in south-west London.
At 6.51pm on Wednesday, January 7, a 90-year-old man was struck by a moped as he walked outside the post office in London Road, Hackbridge.
The pensioner was taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service where he was treated for cuts and bruises.
Sutton police said the driver, an 18-year-old man, was reported for driving without due care and attention.In nearby Kingston town centre, at the shared space near John Lewis, which is open to buses and pedestrians, a man in his 80s was hit and taken to St George’s Hospital as a priority with head and leg injuries, at about 4pm on Friday, January 9.