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Residents to reclaim the street
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| Councillors Brian Pilcher and Penelope Morgan are supporting the residents' fight. |
RESIDENTS of Orford Way say they will be forced to take to the streets to protest against drivers using their roads as a rat run.
County councillor Penelope Morgan has taken up their case and is holding a public meeting on Monday, May 19, to organise the demonstration.
Signs at the end of the road clearly show that no motor vehicles should use it except for access to homes. But drivers continue to disregard the signs, say residents.
Karen Packer, of Orford Way, said: "I've lived here all my life, and it really started when the retail park opened. People come through here as a short cut instead of using Pickersleigh Road and North End Lane. They just come whizzing through and somebody's going to get killed. I had three cats run over in a year."
Neighbour Dick Evans said: "This used to be a really quiet road and now it's like living next door to a motorway. There's a continual noise. The council put these signs up but no-one takes any notice."
Residents say they want something done, whether it is traffic-calming measures or increased policing.
Coun Morgan said: "It's a real problem for them, and they are absolutely fed up. If blocking off the road with a demonstration is the only way we can get action, that's what we'll do."
A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said: "The road is access-only, which means motorists are prohibited from using it for anything other than residential access. Following concerns from residents, we have also installed advanced warning signs at the entrance to the road in an effort to divert unnecessary traffic away from the road."
The public meeting is in the Jubilee Room at St Mary's Church, Sherrards Green, at 6pm.
4:26pm Friday 9th May 2008
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CommentPosted by: Salsa, Malvern on 6:12pm Fri 9 May 08
Isn't this a public road, can't any one use it? How can you stop people using a public road, if you don't like it, live in a cul-de-sac.
Isn't this a public road, can't any one use it? How can you stop people using a public road, if you don't like it, live in a cul-de-sac.
Posted by: chocolate starfish, malvern on 7:56pm Fri 9 May 08
Living in a cul-de-sac is also a nightmare as you have to put up with cars doing tree point turns or/and reversing causing all sorts of problems. Parking in a cul-de-sac is no fun. You often find your self hemmed in between two disgusting oversized idiotic 4x4’s with no escape.
Even with these obstacles trying to find a house on a cul-de-sac can also be a problem as they are usually more expensive and are in short supply.
All in all I think it was a spiteful suggestion to the people of Orford way that they should sell up, ship out and move to a cul-de sac.
All they want is a little peace and safety from mindless petrol heads racing home from buying some plastic garden furniture to watch Eastenders.
Living in a cul-de-sac is also a nightmare as you have to put up with cars doing tree point turns or/and reversing causing all sorts of problems. Parking in a cul-de-sac is no fun. You often find your self hemmed in between two disgusting oversized idiotic 4x4’s with no escape.
Even with these obstacles trying to find a house on a cul-de-sac can also be a problem as they are usually more expensive and are in short supply.
All in all I think it was a spiteful suggestion to the people of Orford way that they should sell up, ship out and move to a cul-de sac.
All they want is a little peace and safety from mindless petrol heads racing home from buying some plastic garden furniture to watch Eastenders.
Posted by: Steve Price, Malvern on 8:56pm Fri 9 May 08
They [the residents] are lucky they live in a restricted access road. I live in Pound Bank Road and the traffic is horrendous all day, with the chav boy racers and buses roaring past day and night. At least Orford Way folk do get some respite.
The police should enforce the rules but I suppose they have better things to do, the residents could take action by cycling or driving very slowly up and down at peak periods perhaps on random days, this would put some drivers off and of course mean a police presence...
Even though it is a potential short cut for me I go the long way round but I know plenty who don't, but that is human nature I suppose.
The best the residents could hope for is that some traffic calming is put in place that slows it down so much that the legal alternative is more attractive.
They are lucky they live in a restricted access road. I live in Pound Bank Road and the traffic is horrendous all day, with the chav boy racers and buses roaring past day and night. At least Orford Way folk do get some respite.
The police should enforce the rules but I suppose they have better things to do, the residents could take action by cycling or driving very slowly up and down at peak periods perhaps on random days, this would put some drivers off and of course mean a police presence...
Even though it is a potential short cut for me I go the long way round but I know plenty who don't, but that is human nature I suppose.
The best the residents could hope for is that some traffic calming is put in place that slows it down so much that the legal alternative is more attractive.
Posted by: Karl Hunderson, Malvern on 7:28pm Sat 10 May 08
[quote][bold]Salsa[/bold] wrote:
Isn't this a public road, can't any one use it? How can you stop people using a public road, if you don't like it, live in a cul-de-sac.[/quote] While it is a public road it has restricted access by law.To ignore this restriction is not only inconsiderate but also breaking the law. If you don't like the law, live somewhere else.
Salsa wrote:
Isn't this a public road, can't any one use it? How can you stop people using a public road, if you don't like it, live in a cul-de-sac.
While it is a public road it has restricted access by law.To ignore this restriction is not only inconsiderate but also breaking the law. If you don't like the law, live somewhere else.
Posted by: indignant, Malvern on 9:15am Sun 11 May 08
I have just read with absolute amazement the ‘RESIDENTS TO RECLAIM STREET’ article on the Malvern Gazette website, and I ask myself the following questions ~
• What gives residents of ANY street or road in Malvern, (or anywhere else for that matter) the right to ‘ACCESS ONLY’ signs? (unless the roads themselves are PRIVATE)
• Who do you have to be – or know – to get such rights? I have noticed these signs springing up in various places around Malvern, and it makes me very annoyed.
• We would ALL like to live in a nice, quiet, traffic free environment, - goodness knows I would - but look at the situation from the side of people living in Pickersleigh Road (as an example). Why should they have to tolerate EXTRA traffic so that others can live in a quieter neighbourhood? Pickersleigh Road is awful to drive along at the best of times and I think it would make more sense to divert some traffic off the MAIN roads onto quieter routes. Thus ‘spreading the load’ more evenly as it were.
• I personally live in a ‘slip road’ OFF a VERY busy main road, and we have to tolerate all day car parking from pupils of a nearby secondary school and customers to nearby shops.
• Correct me if I am wrong, but surely Council Tax payers funded the recent resurfacing of Orford Way and surrounding streets (?) - Yet the BUSY main roads, which actually take most of the traffic, are in a state of considerable disrepair. Hardly seems right does it?
• I’ve lived in Malvern ALL my life, some 58 years, and I find it totally unacceptable that I should be denied access to these streets
• I’d also like to ask these people how THEY would feel if the residents in busy main roads decided to try to make their streets ACCESS ONLY? Or take the same protest action.
Why should some people have these rights and others have to tolerate things the way they are?
Why the TWO TIER society?
In my opinion, ALL of these schemes should be stopped – unless there are really compelling safety grounds for them. I would hardly think that Orford Way would qualify. The road in which I live ought to qualify above Orford Way, because Emergency Vehicles, Road Sweepers and Refuse Lorries can never get along OUR road! - NO SUCH PROBLEMS FOR ORFORD WAY RESIDENTS!
We all (well most!) pay Council Tax, and should all be entitled to the same freedom of movement.
I have just read with absolute amazement the ‘RESIDENTS TO RECLAIM STREET’ article on the Malvern Gazette website, and I ask myself the following questions ~
• What gives residents of ANY street or road in Malvern, (or anywhere else for that matter) the right to ‘ACCESS ONLY’ signs? (unless the roads themselves are PRIVATE)
• Who do you have to be – or know – to get such rights? I have noticed these signs springing up in various places around Malvern, and it makes me very annoyed.
• We would ALL like to live in a nice, quiet, traffic free environment, - goodness knows I would - but look at the situation from the side of people living in Pickersleigh Road (as an example). Why should they have to tolerate EXTRA traffic so that others can live in a quieter neighbourhood? Pickersleigh Road is awful to drive along at the best of times and I think it would make more sense to divert some traffic off the MAIN roads onto quieter routes. Thus ‘spreading the load’ more evenly as it were.
• I personally live in a ‘slip road’ OFF a VERY busy main road, and we have to tolerate all day car parking from pupils of a nearby secondary school and customers to nearby shops.
• Correct me if I am wrong, but surely Council Tax payers funded the recent resurfacing of Orford Way and surrounding streets (?) - Yet the BUSY main roads, which actually take most of the traffic, are in a state of considerable disrepair. Hardly seems right does it?
• I’ve lived in Malvern ALL my life, some 58 years, and I find it totally unacceptable that I should be denied access to these streets
• I’d also like to ask these people how THEY would feel if the residents in busy main roads decided to try to make their streets ACCESS ONLY? Or take the same protest action.
Why should some people have these rights and others have to tolerate things the way they are?
Why the TWO TIER society?
In my opinion, ALL of these schemes should be stopped – unless there are really compelling safety grounds for them. I would hardly think that Orford Way would qualify. The road in which I live ought to qualify above Orford Way, because Emergency Vehicles, Road Sweepers and Refuse Lorries can never get along OUR road! - NO SUCH PROBLEMS FOR ORFORD WAY RESIDENTS!
We all (well most!) pay Council Tax, and should all be entitled to the same freedom of movement.
Posted by: Salsa, Malvern on 1:07pm Mon 12 May 08
Totally agree with you indignant, imagine the whining and whinghing if every road was made 'access ony', I pay road tax and council tax and should be allowed to drive along any road that gets me from a to b. I live in a road that is used as a short cut and yes it is annoying when someone drives fast, not just 'boy racers' either, but I chose to live in this road so have to live with it. Question for residents of Orford Way and Lower Chase Road while we are at it, what came first, you or the road?!!
Totally agree with you indignant, imagine the whining and whinghing if every road was made 'access ony', I pay road tax and council tax and should be allowed to drive along any road that gets me from a to b. I live in a road that is used as a short cut and yes it is annoying when someone drives fast, not just 'boy racers' either, but I chose to live in this road so have to live with it. Question for residents of Orford Way and Lower Chase Road while we are at it, what came first, you or the road?!!
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