Alec Mackie says drivers utter ‘a silent prayer’ they will not be involved in a crash at a busy roundabout as he takes calls for barriers up a gear by raising them at a road safety meeting.
Alec Mackie raised his concerns, and those of others in the community, about the Ketch roundabout at a meeting at Warndon Hub in Ankerage Green in Warndon Villages, Worcester.
Mr Mackie, 85, of Bergonia Close has also raised the matter with St Peter’s Parish Council and with the Highways authority and Worcestershire County Council.
Mr Mackie had agreed to represent St Peter’s Parish Council, following the death of the chairman, Paul Walter at the meeting at the end of last month.
This followed a unanimous vote by the parish council to invite officers of Worcestershire County Council and West Mercia’s Police and Crime Commissioner to see the issue themselves.
Mr Mackie said: “Unless you are the driver of a lorry or high-sided vehicle, it is almost impossible to see to the right (without breaking your neck) fast approaching traffic from the A38 Kempsey direction.
“This means that drivers, like my wife and I and thousands of others, who daily have to take a risk to turn left at the junction and say a silent prayer that this risk-taking is successful and no road traffic accidents occur.
“There have been numerous non-reportable bumps and scrapes at this black spot and I have recent photographic evidence of vehicle debris, scattered on the greensward that separates highway from path, to prove my point.”
Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion hosted the drop-in ‘Roads Focus’ event in Warndon on Tuesday, January 30 between 6pm to 8pm at the Warndon Hub, in partnership with West Mercia Police. The event aims to bring together the force’s Road Safety Team and Worcestershire County Council’s Highways Team.
At the meeting, Mr Mackie also elaborated on what he sees as another significant issue – the safety of pedestrians and cyclists on the footpath next to the roundabout.
“We have no protection from all vehicles whose drivers may, and do, lose control navigating the tight turn against the camber of the road,” he said.
Mr Mackie has suggested a steel barrier, ‘similar to that surrounding the steel reinforced brickwork that protects the pylon’. Another, ‘cheaper solution’ he says would be a 6ft bund along the 30 metres of unprotected pedway.
A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said: “Senior County Council officers met with the Parish Council and Divisional County Councillor last year to discuss these matters.
“The roundabout went through a thorough design process and the completed scheme was also subject to a Road Safety Audit, without any concerns being raised about the junction with the A38 north or the provision of a Vehicle Restraint System at the eastbound roundabout exit.”