Castlegreen Road traffic warden

[daviddd]

The warden that sees the kids across the road opposite the station seems to me to have got it all wrong. I regularly come down the hill past the High School to turn left into Castlegreen Road, where the warden stands only about 5 yards around the bend; even when I'm going slow I sometimes have to brake hard if someone's crossing. I think she should stand a bit further up Castlegreen Road for safety's sake - if someone were to come around that bend really fast there could be an accident, God forbid!

For that matter, this junction is so busy these days (check it out at 4.30 PM!!) that it should be a roundabout? It's quite similar to the Wick roundabout so no precedents there?

[jjc]

But would kids walk up Castlegreen Road, cross and then walk back down Castlegreen Road... or would they just cross at the junction and hope for the best? I'm inclined to think the latter, and it is surely better for safety to put the Lollipop Lady where the kids cross than to have her standing 100 yards up the road doing nothing whilst the kids take their chances?

[Drutt]

Ah, my old stomping ground. :D

The school crossing patroller (or lollipop lady as she was then) stood in that same spot back 25 years ago when I first used to cross there. I don't know how long before that that the patroller stood in the same spot. If it's been good enough for that long, and helps kids get to and from school safely, I don't see any reason why it should change.


if someone were to come around that bend really fast there could be an accident, God forbid! Perhaps it would be better not to accomodate the idiots who might be inclined to come around that bend really fast. The blame would lie entirely with the idiot who did such a thing, after all. :confused

[daviddd]

I see what you mean JJC, but it would be even better if barriers were to be erected around the corner - I have seen these at many similar junctions elsewhere...

[moncur]

how about a mirror on the lamp-post at the junction? that way both motorists and pedestrians coming down ormlie road can see better before turning up onto castlegreen road. an inexpensive measure i think

[Bobinovich]

As parents we walk our kids down to that crossing point every day. It's undoubtedly the most convenient point to cross for kids coming down both Ormlie Road and Castlegreen Road.

The onus is on drivers to observe the flashing lights coming from all directions towards the school, and also to observe the 20mph limit which is now around many local schools.

Also, for the record, we have seen a number of near misses on the Princes Street crossing at the school itself as drivers try and race past before the lollipop lady steps out onto the road, or have just been in a world of their own and had to brake sharply to avoid running her over.

At those times of the day when schools are starting, lunchtimes, and finishing, drivers ought to be paying far more attention to their surroundings than beating the clock to get to their destination.

Rant over!

P.S. davidd - I'm not sure what putting barriers up would change?

[jjc]

I see what you mean JJC, but it would be even better if barriers were to be erected around the corner - I have seen these at many similar junctions elsewhere... Possibly, but then you'd need to erect barriers all the way to Ormlie or the kids would simply cross Ormlie Road before they got to the barrier.

I don't know if you have them up in Thurso these days, but down here (Glasgow) the crossings outside schools have variable speed-limits. When the lollipop man/woman is on duty the area around the school becomes a 20mph zone, designated by big, flashing speed-limit signs. Not only does it mean there is a lower speed-limit when the children are out in force, but the lights are very hard to miss and really make drivers aware of the danger. I agree with Drutt that we shouldn’t make excuses for reckless drivers – so let’s make them drive slower.

[landmarker]

Perhaps it would be better not to accomodate the idiots who might be inclined to come around that bend really fast. The blame would lie entirely with the idiot who did such a thing, after all. :confused

The blame is academic when you might have two or three kids spreadeagled in the road for want of a word with the warden. I know nothing about the area but surely 99% of these drivers would know the lollipop lady is there.

The trend around here is for 20mph mandatory speed limits near schools in urban areas. Often backed up by cameras and humps.

[daviddd]

As parents we walk our kids down to that crossing point every day. It's undoubtedly the most convenient point to cross for kids coming down both Ormlie Road and Castlegreen Road.

The onus is on drivers to observe the flashing lights coming from all directions towards the school, and also to observe the 20mph limit which is now around many local schools.

Also, for the record, we have seen a number of near misses on the Princes Street crossing at the school itself as drivers try and race past before the lollipop lady steps out onto the road, or have just been in a world of their own and had to brake sharply to avoid running her over.

At those times of the day when schools are starting, lunchtimes, and finishing, drivers ought to be paying far more attention to their surroundings than beating the clock to get to their destination.

Rant over!

P.S. davidd - I'm not sure what putting barriers up would change?
Putting barriers up would stop kids running across if the warden were a bit further up the road. Many traffic lights in cities (Edinburgh for example) have crossing places where the pedestrians have to walk a bit further away from the junction - presumably because of previous accidents.

I'm not saying motorists should be given carte blanche here, just that there could be an optimum solution that 's better for all. yes, there is a 20 mph zone here, but you don't see the lollipop lady until you're 5 yards away - yes most local drivers know she's there - but I still think it's an accident waiting to happen.