As a local resident of south Leeds, you will no doubt have seen the ongoing roadworks along the A653 Dewsbury Road. As well as being a thriving high street surrounded by housing, local businesses and facilities, the road is also a busy route into the city.
The decision to carry out a road safety improvement scheme in the area came about following a review of injuries from accidents along the A653 between Hunslet Hall Road and Garnet Road. This found that there were 67 recorded injury accidents in a 5 year period, a significant number of which involved vulnerable road users such as cyclists and pedestrians.
Phase 1 of the project between Hunslet Hall Road and Tunstall Road is now mostly completed and work on Phase 2 has begun. You may remember reading about the proposals in this article last year.
The first phase of works saw the installation of dedicated cycle tracks and laybys for parking outside of the shops. Footway resurfacing will be carried towards the end of the scheme and will signal the finish of the works.
The work for Phase 2 has recently started between Tunstall Road and Garnet Road. A central reservation will be built with crossing points for pedestrians, making it easier and safer to get across this busy road. The central reservation will also help to reduce the number of accidents that happen when vehicles turn into and out of the junctions along that section of the road. As in Phase 1, dedicated parking bays will be added to support the local shops. These are also designed to stop cars parking on the footpaths, therefore keeping walkways safer for pedestrians. Other improvements to make the area more pedestrian friendly includes the removal of unnecessary signage and street furniture, making the road look and feel less cluttered.
The work is anticipated to be completed in late March / early April 2018 and Leeds City Council have apologised for any disruption during the improvement scheme. While there may be some disruption, once completed the works are expected to lead to improved safety and accessibility for all road users in the locality.
Here is a link to the Leeds City Council web page for more information about the scheduled works.
Remember, road safety is everyone’s responsibility. We need to learn to share the roads, however we choose to travel. There are a few simple everyday things that we can all do to help keep our roads as safe as possible:
- Be considerate
- Slow down
- Give the road your full attention
- LOOK, LOOK, LOOK, LOOK AGAIN
This post was written by Toni Tankard using our Create an article for South Leeds Life page.