ePetition - Keep the permanent closure by Brunswick school, on Somerhill road
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ePetition details
Keep the permanent closure by Brunswick school, on Somerhill road
We believe the closure has very positively transformed Somerhill
Road to a much quieter,
safer and cleaner street. The closure has slowed vehicles down and
reduced the rat run traffic of
people using the street to avoid traffic lights in Holland Road. In
particular, the improvement for
safer crossing at the Lansdowne road junction (previously a
difficult one with low visibility) has
been massive. That closure benefits not only the residents and the
Brunswick Primary
community but also the many people on foot, cycles, mobility aids
and vehicles using it. A lot of
these people go along or cross Somerhill Road to reach St
Ann’s Well Gardens and the many
schools and nurseries in the area at different times during the
day, from the very early morning to
the evening, making a permanent closure a useful tool to make the
street more pleasant and safer.
Most importantly, the closure has immensely helped the Brunswick
Primary School Street
Scheme, making it more effective, safer and sustainable in the
longer term as it is exclusively run by volunteers. We believe a
permanent calmed traffic next to the largest primary school in the
county is certainly justified.
We understand that some of the initial issues for rubbish
collection highlighted by Cityclean
were then resolved. We also understand the concerns expressed by
Wavertree House about
the number of vehicles entering the street and then u-turning at
its closed end. However, we
believe better signage and infrastructure should drastically reduce
the issue, and we hope we
can work together again with Wavertree House to minimise
issues.
Finally, we believe the previous consultation was too short and
not publicised enough (there
were only few opinions expressed there (with five comments of
support and four objections).
Therefore, we ask the Council to further consult the residents as
well as school and street users
in due time in the case of altering the scheme in place in order to
find a better alternative to
all.
This ePetition ran from 24/10/2021 to 06/04/2022 and has now finished.
431 people signed this ePetition.
Council response
Thank you for your petition relating to the School Street at
Brunswick Primary School.
School Streets offers a solution to many of the issues that schools
and residents have experienced over many years including idling,
double parking and dangerous driving at drop off and pick up times.
The reduced traffic and reallocation of road space made available
by School Streets closures also encourages people to make the
school journey using sustainable modes such as cycling, walking and
scooting.
As you will be aware, the School Streets closure at Brunswick
Primary School on Somerhill Road was introduced as part of the
council’s urgency response in the Covid-19 pandemic, which
had the additional aim of supporting social distancing at drop off
and pick up times. Infrastructure was implemented on Somerhill Road
in March 2021 to support the sustainability of the closure and
reduce the pressure on volunteers and schools to operate the
closure at both ends of the road.
In September 2021, a report was presented to the council’s
Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee on the School
Streets closures trialled through the emergency programme,
including the one at Brunswick Primary School. It was recommended
by officers that the permanent closure at one end of Somerhill Road
was reverted to timed, temporary restrictions. The decision to
remove the permanent filter, while maintaining the timed School
Streets closure, was informed by the trial of the closure and
concerns about road safety due to the lack of adequate turning
space for Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) and other vehicles on
Somerhill Road.
As the recommendation to revert the measures was approved by the
council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee
on 21 September 2021, the Traffic Regulation Order to revert the
permanent measures and reinstate temporary, timed restrictions was
sealed.
This has enabled the primary benefits of School Streets to be
realised, as traffic is reduced at peak times while allowing the
road to be open to through traffic the remainder of the time. The
permanent filter has since been replaced with retractable bollards
at one end and a gate at the other, which are operated by
volunteers. These measures provide physical barriers to the road
that prevent motor vehicles from entering during drop off and pick
up times, while ensuring access at all times to those that are
exempt.
We understand that the decision will be disappointing for some
residents, as the permanent closure offered wider benefits
including a reduction in overall traffic levels on Somerhill Road
beyond school drop off and pick up times.
Officers will continue to monitor the closure and we are grateful
for the continued support of volunteers, school staff and the local
community.