We have held site meetings over the past couple of weeks with county officers, representatives of the contractor, residents and representatives of voluntary groups to sort out some concerns and perceptions about various aspects of the London Road project. These are some of the issues we raised

1          La Croissanterie/Monaco, Old High Street

• Extra bollard to be put in by access road to stop Waitrose delivery lorries mounting the kerb near Monaco (safer for pedestrians)
• Bike racks to be re-positioned to increase pavement space for buggies and wheelchairs outside the cafe

2          Stephen Road/Nat West corner

Road surface will be brought up to pavement height with gentle slope to rest of Stephen Road surface. It will be OK for buggies once this has been done

3          Osler Road – dangerous crossing point/sight lines

• Look both ways sign still being debated: pedestrians assume the raised box is a crossing point pedestrian stop place, but it’s a box to govern the lights for the bus gate. County officers consider this an unsafe crossing place for pedestrians  so they have raised the platform and covered it in pyramidal shapes that are harder to stand on
• Confusion over white line dividing cycle track/pedestrian footway and the white kerb edging for partially sighted people – we are informed that this will improve as soon as the kerb edges get worn and dirty

4          Junction with Kennett Road

• Litter bin obtrusive on corner and spoils sight lines for motorists emerging from junction, officers will consider moving this to a location next to the bus shelter on the South side

5          Noticeboard on the south side of London Rd and bus shelter

• Bus shelter to be installed adjacent to noticeboard so the latter will then not stick out so obviously and will get read.
• Bus shelter only has a back to it so the shelter will give some shelter from the west
• Bus stop to be placed as before except that the coach stop is moving further up London Road

6    Lamp post by pedestrian crossing (outside Iceland) in front of pedestrian crossing

• This is still a concern. A lamp post has been positioned directly in front of the pedestrian crossing and a partially sighted resident has objected to this
  
• Lighting is needed thereabouts for safety at the crossing and from the construction point of view needs to be at a building line (this happens to be exactly where the crossing is located). Lamps also have to be alternate sides of London Road so this one has to be in that area
• We asked if we could combine the lamp post and the pole with the pedestrian crossing button on it in one pole: this would require a lamp column with a wider base, in part to accommodate the extra electrical fittings needed. This appears to be something that can’t be changed at this stage, but we have asked our county councillors to assist in lobbying for this

• If the lamp post can’t be relocated, then we decided that lines should be painted on it so that partially sighted people can see it more clearly, possibly black lines (for contrast against the grey) at eye height (standing) and another at eye height (wheelchair)

7          London Road (Andrews estate agents)

• The landlord for this property did not wish to take part in the repaving scheme. The management of the uneven surfaces and area around the tree outside is the responsibility of the landlord, not the County Council. The Area Steward’s team has advised them that they are responsible for any accident occurring on that private land and that they are likely to be sued by members of the general public should they trip or fall in that area