A PROGRAMME of traffic calming measures and a 20mph zone are due to be installed in residential streets near to a large city school.
Residents living near Abbey Mead Primary Academy, in Ross Walk, Belgrave, gave their approval in a recent consultation for new road safety measures to be introduced in over a dozen streets in the area.
The move would link up with existing 20mph zones which are already in place covering the nearby streets off Belgrave Road and Melton Road.
Streets to be included in the new scheme include those between the River Soar north of Abbey Park, extending as far as the existing 20mph zone in residential streets to the west of Belgrave Road.
It will cost around £64,000, funded from Leicester City Council’s Active Travel and Road Safety budget for 2021/22.
The scheme includes Vicarage Lane, Belgrave Avenue, Elmdale Street, Shirley Street, Asha Margh and Holden Street, as well as the length of Ross Walk, and streets to the west including Charles Bennion Walk, Pearson Avenue, McKay Avenue, Moccasin Avenue, Sandal Avenue, Union Street, Brogue Street, Hildyard Road, Hunter Road, Dundonald Road and Marjorie Street, and down as far as Abbey Park Street.
Speed cushions will be installed at various points along Ross Walk, along with a full-width speed hump at its junction with Holden Street. Rows of bollards will also be put in place near the junction of McKay Avenue and Ross Walk to deter pavement parking and improve safety for pedestrians.
A ‘build out’ and full-width speed hump will be put in place on Bruin Street near to Ross Walk to reduce the crossing distance and slow down traffic.
Detailed designs and the necessary traffic orders are being drawn up, with a view to the measures being installed in February 2022.
The work is the latest in a rolling programme of 20mph zones and speed-reduction measures in residential streets, usually around schools.
Of the 157 residents who responded to a consultation carried out earlier this year, 90 percent supported the introduction of a 20mph limit, with 87 percent in favour of traffic-calming measures.
Letters are now being sent to residents updating them on the plans.
Leicester deputy city mayor for environment and transportation, Cllr Adam Clarke, said: “Many of the surrounding streets already have a 20mph limit in place, and this latest work connects the schemes on either side of Belgrave Road, and those east of Abbey Lane.
“Those who took part in the public consultation firmly backed the introduction of these measures, which will be in place early in the new year.
“Since the start of a major programme of 20mph zones began in 2011, measures have been brought in on well over 1,200 streets across the city, and around three quarters of the city’s schools are now in areas with 20mph speed limits.
“Together these measures help improve safety and can help encourage more people to cycle or walk to school instead of using the car.”
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