Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
MSP calls for traffic measures to be kept
Road safety to be reviewed but locals happy with status quo
Traffic calming measures installed last year in Chapelhall are now to be reviewed as part of a wider traffic study covering the area and nearby Calderbank.
Chicanes and speed tables were put in place last October on Woodhall Street, along with a weight restriction to deter lorries and a reduced 20mph speed limit on streets throughout the village.
Now the area’s MSP is calling on North Lanarkshire Council to ensure the road safety measures are retained, ahead of the authority’s planned road surveys in the two areas next month which will “inform any future decision on traffic management measures”.
Alex Neil is concerned that any review of the Chapelhall measures may “potentially undo them” and has written to the local authority making the case for their retention.
The Ai rdrie & Sh o t t s representative said: “Despite some teething problems, the new arrangements are working well and have the support of the local community.
“In particular the chicanes which have been installed, as well as the limitations on heavy goods vehicles, have led to a major improvement.
“I can’t understand why the council is now suggesting reversing these measures – any attempt to do so will meet vigorous opposition and undermine all the goodwill earned amongst local people, resulting from the work already done.
“To spend public money on undoing these measures is even less comprehensible at a time when the council is complaining about a lack of sufficient funds to meet all its spending priorities. I’ve written to the council asking that common sense prevails and that any proposal to undo the safety measures put in place last year are scrapped.”
The traffic calming measures were put in place on the main route through Chapelhall 10 months ago, encouraging use of Lauchope and Woodhall Streets for localised traffic only. It supported long-running moves to deter heavy goods vehicles from the narrow local route, directing those travelling through the area to use Lancaster Avenue and the A73.
Last year’s improvement works were described by council officials as intended “to address local community road safety concerns [ and] follow on from the consultation that the council carried out previously with the community”.
Meanwhile, the Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser told last month how a new crossing is to be put in place on Main Street in Calderbank and a traffic study will be carried out to determined the speeds and amount of through traffic using that village’s narrow and increasingly busy road.
A spokesperson for North Lanarkshire Council said: “As part of a review of traffic conditions in Chapelhall and Calderbank, we will be carrying out detailed traffic surveys in both villages in
September. This will provide clear data about traffic volumes, speed, types of vehicle and the levels of through traffic and local journeys.
“This will be assessed and a report prepared to inform any future decisions on traffic management measures.
“We will consult w i t h elected members and the local communities in both villages before any decisions are made.”