Rodford Way No U-turn Consultation

South Glos has already gone some way towards stopping dangerous U-turns across the Rodford Way dual carriageway by putting an island in the mouth of the Abbotswood junction, which was the favourite turning place.

It hasn't totally solved the problem yet, because some people are still doing U-turns - we even saw a large articulated vehicle do it the other day. Even worse, some of the drivers are going through the wrong gap in the central reservation and meeting legitimate turning traffic head-on, or turning through the three-way Sundridge Park / Rodford Way / Shire Way junction. There have been a number of injuries, both motorists and cyclists.

It is proposed to put legally enforceable "No U-turn" signs for eastbound traffic at the central reservation gaps near Abbotswood, Glenfall, Bredon, Sundridge Park, Dovecote and also at the eastern end of central reservation near the Scott Way roundabout.

You can see the plans and the explanation on the South Glos website. The consultation is open until 12 February,

Rodford Way crash site in the cold light of day

Tony Davis at the bus stop -
it's still standing, but very badly danaged

We thought you might like to see the extent of the damage to the Rodford Way bus stop following Thursday evening's crash. It doesn't look too bad as you drive past, but when Cllr Tony Davis visited site to check it out it was clear that it's a write-off. We will report back when we know a bit more about the circumstances of the accident.

Yet another accident at Yate blackspot

At around 8.25 pm this evening (Thursday 15 January) a car collided with a bus stop on Rodford Way, Yate near the Abbotswood underpass. The car appeared very badly damaged and the bus stop was a write-off. The Police, Ambulance Service and Fire and Rescue attended but it is not known what the extent of injuries might be or whether anyone else was involved.

There have been numerous accidents at this spot, including one child fatality in 2008.

South Gloucestershire Councillor Tony Davis (Lib Dem, Dodington) said "Whatever the cause of this particular accident, the number of serious incidents along this short stretch of road means there could be serious underlying issues"

"When the circumstances of this accident become clearer we shall be calling for a full joint review of this road by the Highway Authority and the Police"

Update 16/01/2015: The Gazette reports "A man was treated at the scene for minor injuries" - sounds like a lucky escape.

Rodford Way accident spot to be investigated

Many local drivers have had "near misses" at the offset junction between Rodford Way, Shire Way and Sundridge Park.

The Frome Vale Area Forum has agreed that this junction should be investigated as a priority under the local highways schemes. We'll let you know when we hear about progress.

Rodford Way accident site - pedestrian safety (?)

South Glos Council has now designed a scheme to deal with hazards to pedestrians crossing Rodford Way near Abbotswood, the site where a child was killed in November 2008. They are proposing a railing along the middle of the dual carriageway to stop people crossing. It would run from the junction with Chargrove, past the pub to the crossing point next to the Kelston Close junction, and would be erected "in early 2011".

South Glos is convinced that encouraging pedestrians to use the underpass, in road safety terms, is the safest way of getting from one side of Rodford Way to the other. They have also arranged:

• Regular cleaning of the underpass,
• Additional police patrols, thanks in part to an additional council-funded PCSO
• Signs on both sides of Rodford Way advising pedestrians to use the underpass
• Repainting the underpass and installing a flood warning system
• Clearing vegetation on the south side of the underpass to improve visibility 
• Extra road safety advice and training for pupils at local school

Do you think this is the answer to the problem - to force people to use an underpass they plainly don't want to? Local councillors have suggested two linked light-controlled crossings, but South Glos has ignored them. The councillors' idea is to have one crossing near the underpass location and one at the Kelston Close crossing point. If the button is pressed, BOTH sets of lights would turn red. The delay would be set so that drivers would never be held up at both sets of lights.

This has been an issue of concern for the last few meetings of the Yate Safer Stronger Community Group. Its next  meeting is at Poole Court this Thursday, 3rd March at 7pm (refreshments available from 6.45pm)

Please come along and let everyone know what you think about the railing idea!

How can we get YOUR opinions on the things that matter to YOU?

At the Abbotswood Week of Action drop-in morning today real "members of the public" were very few on the ground. Almost everyone seemed to be representing an agency, a committee member of a residents association, a councillor, or had some other official role (apart from the young lady making the excellent tea and coffee - many thanks!)

We all did some useful networking but it reinforces a view that consultations have to be taken to places and events where people are already going.

South Glos had done some pre-publicity. They had leafleted the surrounding properties, but the leaflet was a bit of a turn-off - It was headed "Yate and Dodington" and "Abbotswood" wasn't prominent enough. There were no posters in shop windows, and the entrance was hidden away behind the vegetation so we weren't even visible  from the shops. There was no A-frame board out in front of the shops to grab the attention of the (few) passers-by. There was a press release but it majored on the World Cup activities that have been going on in the Youth Centre, so the Evening Post and the Gazette ran with that.

This can't just be a trend for our area - may you have some ideas about how we can all learn how to do this better. I appreciate that this wasn't a Town or Parish consultation, it was S Glos, but we're all in this together.

All comments welcome, both from local readers and those further afield!

Abbotswood - have YOUR say this Saturday

As part of a week of action organised by South Glos Council, there will be an open morning at St Nicholas Church on Saturday from 10.00 am to 12.00 am. Police, Fire & Rescue and representatives of the NHS will be there too.

This is a chance for local people to say what they're concerned about in the community. Maybe for example you would like to go along and say what YOU think should be done about the Rodford Way crossing situation, where there was the fatal accident and another serious accident recently? Or maybe you're concerned about the crumbling steps or rubbish?

If you would like to make a difference to the rubbish situation, especially the morning after an England football match, you can join an "early bird" litter pick from 8 am until 9 am, meeting on the Chargrove side of St Nick's. South Glos will be providing bags and gloves.

During the week of action there will be quite a few young people's World Cup-themed activities going on at the St Nicholas Youth Centre. It's not all football either - there will also be a World Art Day and a World Food Day.