Residents Association speeding reports

click Parish Council speeding reports for other reports on speeding

click The Residents Association for all other reports.

Hallmark July 1995. Report by David Chalkley

We continue to press the County Council to do something about the problem of traffic speeding along Main Road. Thanks to these efforts, and those of the Parish Council and the local M.P. David Liddington, we are beginning to make some progress. The Council carried out speed checks in June over a seven-day period, form 7 am to 7 pm. The results are extremely interesting. The volume of traffic averaged 4200 vehicles per day over the week, and peaked at 4800 on weekdays. 15% of the traffic, equivalent to 625 vehicles broke the speed limit of 40 mph each day. Between 2 and 4 vehicles exceeded 50 mph each day, obviously a very dangerous situation.

For some inexplicable reason the Council engineers placed their speed probe at a point south-east of the junction with Roundlands. At this point traffic is either approaching or leaving a curve in the road, and would naturally slow down. We have, therefore asked the Council to repeat the tests on a straight section between Stocken Farm and Lacey Green School, where we expect recorded speeds to be even higher.

The Council say they are actively looking at traffic calming devices but have not yet come up with a solution. We are pressing them to come up with firm proposals.

Hallmark January 1996. Report by David Chalkley. click David & Barbara Chalkley for more about David)

We continue with our campaign to have something done about traffic speeding along Main Road. At our insistence, Bucks County Council have agreed to carry out further speed checks along the straight section between the Lacey Green School and Stocken Farm. Previous tests have been carried out on the approach to a bend in the road where traffic would naturally slow down.

The Secretary of the Association and I attended a meeting of the Parish Council on November 15th. at which Mr. Spencely, the Divisional Engineer from the Bucks C.C., was questioned about the problem of speeding and what the Council was going to do about it. We found Mr. Spencely's attitude to be entirely negative, and all the suggestions made by Parish Councillors and ourselves were considered by him either to be too difficult, too expensive or to require engineering resources that he did not have. Even the obvious suggestion to have the 40mph speed limit sign at the south end of the Village moved further towards Strike Command met with a negative response.

We pointed out that speed cameras had proved highly effective on the A40 and other roads, but the cost (£7000 for the housing and up to £25000 for the camera) was considered by Mr. Spencely to be prohibitive.

We were left with the impression that only a spate of serious accidents along Main Road would convince the County Council and the Police that some action was needed. lronically a serious traffic accident occurred outside Lacey Green School shortly after the meeting, and we understand that a Police prosecution is likely.