New travel plan to be discussed following concerns over “horrendous” traffic problems near school

FOLLOWING concerns over “horrendous” traffic problems, highway chiefs are liaising with Bridgewater High School at Appleton to develop a new travel plan.

Liz Priest a long-time resident of Park Crescent Appleton and a close neighbour of Bridgewater High School lower site is calling for urgent action after having to abandon her own vehicle in the middle of the road and direct traffic, to relieve congestion.

She says the current situation is a “horrendous risk to health and safety” pointing out a child had been injured in a traffic incident on nearby Lyons Lane recently.

Liz said: ” I reported my serious concerns re traffic at school home time over three weeks ago to the school, police and Warrington Borough Council.
“Illegal parking is causing a solid traffic jam. No one was moving until I abandoned my car in the middle of the road and got people to reverse etc to relieve the situation.
“This was all going on with children running in amongst the cars.
“It is very worrying and a horrendous risk to health and safety.”
Liz said the outcome of her concerns resulted in the School sending an email to parents. She claimed the police refused to act, while the council promised a response within 28 days.
“Me and my neighbours have witnessed even worse problems recently. A child was injured in Lyons Lane only the other week.”

Since being contacted by Warrington Worldwide a council officer has been in touch with Mrs Priest to set up a site meeting.

Commenting on behalf of Cheshire Police Sergeant Gareth Kerr, said: “Officers have not recently received any reports of parking or traffic issues in the Park Crescent area of Appleton but due to the school road being one-way-in and one-way-out, it will naturally always be busy at school opening and closing times for a short period, as is the case with schools across the county.
“In terms of parking and traffic issues, it is the responsibility of the local authority to enforce any parking restrictions in the area.
“However, our local officers are aware of the situation and will endeavour to monitor the traffic in the area around school times to alleviate the flow of traffic and to assist in dealing with any motorists parking illegally as part of ongoing patrol plans around the five schools in Appleton.”

A Warrington Borough Council spokesperson said: “We are currently liaising with Bridgewater High School to develop a new travel plan. We are also delivering talks to pupils on cycling safety and letters have been sent from the school to parents advising them about a number of issues around road safety, including adhering to local parking restrictions, ensuring pavements, driveways and pedestrian access points are kept clear, and inappropriate parking on roads close to the school.
“We will continue to monitor the parking issues around the school.
“An officer from the council will contact the resident and offer a site meeting.”