Speeding drivers leave parents afraid to let children play outside
RESIDENTS ALSO COMPLAIN OF SCREECHING TYRES AND NOISY MOTORCYLES
RESIDENTS of an estate in a Derby suburb say they have considered moving and that they fear letting their children play outside because of speeding drivers.
Parents in and around Girton Way in Mickleover have said that the drivers are ruining the area and speed around corners at all hours of the day and night.
A sign blasting the drivers was put up on some fencing last Wednesday by someone who claimed to be an NHS worker. The sign urged drivers to “stop speeding now” and said “no one is impressed”, with an image of the sign shared widely on social media.
The sign was taken down on Friday, July 15. But residents in the area have agreed that there is a serious problem.
James Jonas, a 34-year-old sales manager, moved to the estate 10 years ago and said that the issue has been around for several years. But he said that the sign was the first instance of someone taking a public stand.
He said: “It’s a recurring thing, it’s more bikes than cars, but it’s at all hours of the night. The school buses come through here and there are some parking problems, but there isn’t a major problem with that.
“But people do tear down here quite quickly. It’s been constant for the past five years. If the kids want to go out and play football, we need to tell them to be careful.
“It’s frustrating that we need to be more cautious. We are scared to let them out, even if they want to just cross over the road.”
Mr Jonas also said that parking problems can cause a headache, with the narrow streets frequently blocked by cars parking on both sides of the roads, which are used by buses.
Sarah, another resident, said that she had considered leaving the area due to the problem. She said the speeding was making the estate become a “ghetto”.
She said: “There are mopeds with really loud exhausts speeding around all hours of the day, early hours of the morning, eight, nine, ten times a day. I work from home and all I can hear is really loud exhausts.
“There are four or five mopeds that come round, but cars as well, just screeching around like it’s a race track.”
Many of the complaints centre around a junction between Bishop Lonsdale Way and Girton Way, but the problem reportedly affects several areas of the estate. The junction has no give-way lines or road markings and allows drivers to cut corners at speed.
One other resident, who did not wish to be named, said: “They do come down here fast, we have been surprised about how quickly the cars come down. When we sit in the front room, we have heard cars having to slam their brakes on.
“Usually, drivers at the junction don’t stop, they just keep going. The speeding is at all hours of the day, it does not matter what time.”
Responding to a picture of the sign, one resident on social media said: “Well said. Whoever wrote this is more than welcome to add one to the gates of the football pitches too. On training and matchdays it’s horrendous on this end of the estate.”
Another said: “Well said – I’m sick of it the way that drivers come into the top of the estate nearly having a head-on collision.”
Derby city councillor Miles Pattison said he will be pushing for Girton Way to be added to a list of areas monitored by police and volunteers after hearing of the residents’ concerns.
He said: “We’re aware of speeding concerns at the Varsity estate, as there are in other areas of Mickleover. We regularly raise these when we have meetings with local police.
“We have been encouraging residents who have concerns to join the local police neighbourhood speed watch to carry out roadside community speed checks, and will be suggesting Girton Way is added to the list of roads this is carried out on.”
Derbyshire Live has contacted Derbyshire police for comment.
There are four or five mopeds that come round, but cars as well, screeching around like it’s a race track. Sarah