Parish Council speeding reports

click Parish Council for all other reports.

Hallmark October 1983. A request from the Parish Council to reduce the Lacey Green Main Road speed limit from 40 m.p.h. to 30 m.p.h. and extend the limit to the Loosley Row boundary on "Woodway" has been turned down by the Bucks County Council Highways Dept., on the grounds that the accident rate is too low. The Council are to ask for an explanation of the criteria of why the speed limit is to be extended on the Walters Ash end of the Parish but not on the Loosley Row end of the same road. It was also pointed out at a recent Parish Councl Meeting that the 'increased vision' work being carried out at the 'Crooked Chimney', while welcome, will increase speed.

Hallmark September 1985 Report by Councillor Ray Gosling

Recently we have had another accident outside the school during pick-up time showing once again how dangerous this part of Main Road can be.

The Parish Council has tried to get the speed limit reduced to 30 mph but this has proved not to be possible due to it now being County Council policy not to have a speed limit lower than 40 mph unless there are special circumstances – our school does not qualify we are told!!

We have also requested that the speed limit be extended further out of the village. This requires the passing of a by-law and will be added to the next batch to be: put forward to the legislature. This however is unlikely to be for some years tocome.

One action that will happen is the repositioning of the school warning sign further out of the village to give drivers more time to slow down.

Hallmark February 1986 Reporting Parish Pump Politics. By Councillor Ray Gosling. (click Ray & Jill Gosling for more about Ray)

Road safety is still causing concern. With large lorries, speeding traffic, cars obstructing pavements and the dangers associated with parking outside the school, we seem to have more than our fair share of traffic problems for a village as small as ours. The feeling of the Parish Council is. that action has to be taken before another serious accident occurs. Hence we have made requests to the police to monitor the speed of traffic through the village and take action against those who insist on parking on pavements, it would be a shame if these measures produced prosecutions against village residents, so be warned.

Hallmark December 1986. Parish Pump Politics By Councillor Ray Gosling (Ray & Jill Gosling)

With the coming of winter the traffic situation in Lacey Green and Loosley Row has markedly deteriorated.

Along with the well-known problems of parking outside Lacey Green School, speeding and obstruction of pavements, we now have to add the sheer volume of through traffic and dangerous parking outside Hickmans Stores.

The cause of the volume of traffic we believe to be that people are finding our villages a quicker and more convenient route into and beyond Wycombe.

The question of parking outside the shop is quite a different matter. We are pleased that Mr. and Mrs. Norris and family have taken over and revitalised Hickman's Store and we would in no way wish to damage trade, but the irresponsible parking on some of the approaches to the bend and even by parking on the opposite side of the road defies belief. During the rush hours particularly vehicles negotiating ''the bend" take their lives in their hands; all it is going to take is one speeding car, at the wrong time, and we could well have another fatality.

The Parish Council has thought long and hard on what we can do to alleviate these problems. The answer unfortunately is very little but we have decided to carry out an extensive campaign to try and prompt action by the District and County Councils. As part of this, we have already had a meeting with the Thames Valley Police who have agreed to work with us and carry out the following package:

1. A speed check is to be carried out somewhere in the parish in the near future – be warned.

2. Support for the Council is extending footpaths up past The Black Horse and from the Village Hall to Roundlands.

3. Fixed penalty fines for "bad" parking throughout the village i.e. obstruction of footpaths, parking on bends etc.

4. Work with the council in encouraging customers of the shop to use the Village Hall car park – no matter how short the stay.