Mum’s danger road bid
A MOTHER-of-two has launched a campaign to get a narrow road in Shepshed made safer amid fears for children walking to school.
Meghann Flook, of Shepshed, has two young children, aged seven and one, who attend school and pre-school on the Iveshead campus in the town.
She said: “We walk using one of the main routes up Loughborough Road which is the route many people drive up and the school buses use.
“The road is very dangerous, barely wide enough in places for two vehicles to pass, and the single pavement is exceptionally narrow, sloping and often blocked by overgrown hedges. This means the pavement is only wide enough for people to walk single file at its widest, so parents cannot hold children’s hands and people have to walk on the road with pushchairs while cars and buses squeeze past.”
She has contacted Leicestershire County Council’s highways department about the situation, but is not holding out much hope that anything will be done about it.
She has also written to Loughborough MP Nicky Morgan to ask for her support on the issue and has started an online petition for action to be taken, plus is starting paper petitions in the town.
She said: “I’m hoping to get enough signatures and comments to make the council sit back and take notice and look into ways to make the pavement wider, as every day I fear an accident or my children getting injured.”
Meghann added: “It’s not wide enough for wheelchairs and mobility scooters, and just isn’t suitable or safe for the amount of foot traffic generated by the size of the school campus.
“I ask that the council look into ways to improve the safety on this road, whether it be by making it one way, or looking into alter- native means of keeping cars and pedestrians separate.
“Surely keeping our children safe on dangerous road has got to be the main concern and priority. Please join me in asking for change!”
The petition can be viewed at https:// www.change.org/p/leicestershire-countycouncil-make-loughborough-road-one-way
Shepshed town councillors Joan Tassell and Christine Radford are both supporting the calls for safety measures to be carried out at Loughborough Road, and at Forest Street.
Coun Tassell said Shepshed Town Team had set up a group to look at traffic problems in the town. She said: “They have submitted to the county council some proposals for that area and are awaiting them to come back.
“It is just the amount of traffic on very, very narrow roads and footpaths.”
And Coun Radford - also a county councillor - added that she had spoken to county council officers about their concerns about both roads.
A spokesperson for Leicestershire County Council said: “We are aware of a request received on March 12 from a resident to investigate the possibility of changing Loughborough Road, Shepshed to a oneway system. The county council will investigate the residents’ concerns in due course.
“We have not received a petition on this matter.”