FAMILIES and councillors have officially presented a petition calling for urgent action to improve safety for school children in a village near Wotton.
It comes after three children were hit by cars in two separate incidents along the narrow Wotton Road in Kingswood in July.
According to Gloucestershire Police, in one incident, one child was left with a fractured elbow while walking home from Katharine Lady Berkeley's.
Following the two incidents, many parents, councillors from Kingswood Parish Council and Cllr Linda Cohen (LD, Wotton-under-Edge) have urged Gloucestershire County Council to make the road safer.
Along the stretch of road there is no pedestrian crossing and currently no parking restrictions.
Meanwhile, school buses also keep getting stuck.
There have been calls to permanently reroute two different school bus routes run by Eurocoaches and Applegates which go through Wotton Road.
A public safety meeting was held on Monday, August 14, organised by Kingswood Parish Council.
However, no action has yet been taken to improve the situation.
READ MORE: Calls for action at safety meeting
READ MORE: Calls for urgent action after school buses get stuck in narrow road
Sian Blackham, a local mother, started a petition that has gathered over 740 signatures.
This was presented to GCC at a meeting at Shire Hall in Gloucester yesterday, Wednesday, September 13 by members from Kingswood Village Road Safety Group.
Ms Blackham said: “We’re disappointed by the response today and lack of meaningful action by GCC.
“At the heart of this, are the children, who we all have a duty to protect.
“Walking to school should be encouraged and children should feel safe to do so.
“The schools have been back for just over a week and the traffic chaos is in full swing!
“Eurocoaches and Applegates continue to send their school buses through the narrow pinch point on Wotton Road.
“Vehicles are still mounting the footpath to squeeze through and ignoring the give way.
“There’s a range of factors affecting road safety in the village but the school buses rerouting will help ease congestion at school time significantly.
“We need GCC to work with the community to really understand the problem and find solutions quickly.
“We cannot sit back and wait for another child to be injured or worse!”
A spokesperson for GCC said: “We have listened to the concerns raised by local people.
“Officers with road safety audit experience have visited this area with the police and attended the public meeting on August 14.
“Our Integrated Transport Unit has also been in touch with local bus operators to inform this work.
“There is no record of casualties at this location so we are looking at low-cost measures to manage parking and help keep the road and junction clear.
“We will continue to work closely with Kingswood Parish Council, the local county councillor and residents.”
Both Eurocoaches and Applegates were approached for comment.
You can view the GCC meeting concerning Kingwood (from 12.21) here - tinyurl.com/esxvt5h5
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