No more changes to speed problem road
South Lanarkshire Council have claimed that no further safety measures are needed for a Rutherglen road that locals say is a danger – despite admitting that speeding motorists are a problem there.
Earlier this year a 10-yearold boy was injured after being struck by a car on Fernhill Road, prompting residents there to renew calls for traffic lights to be installed there.
They have insisted for years that the road is plagued by speeding motorists and that further accidents are likely.
At the time South Lanarkshire Council (SLC) stated that they would wait for a police report into the accident before deciding what steps to take.
They have now revealed they do not believe any further safety measures are required, leaving locals furious.
Davy O’Neill, who lives in the area and has long campaigned for traffic lights, recently told the Reformer: “Fernhill Road is
probably more dangerous than ever. You would think one set of lights would be in the council’s budget reach but it seems like they are hell bent on not making life easier for Fernhill OAPs, kids, and the general public in Fernhill.
“They painted the crossing up and a few new signs, but it’s still not good enough. You have cars racing
to beat the next one through the crossing, you have kids and OAPs struggling to get cars to stop for them to cross and you have drivers out shouting at each other over who has right of way.
“I really hope at some point common sense prevails and they put up one set of lights to make people feel a bit safer here.”
Earlier this year Rutherglen South councillor Margaret Cowie stated she was in favour of the road having additional safety measures put in place.
At the time she stated: “I would support some new traffic calming measures because there’s a lot of pensioners who say they hate crossing there, and then there are accidents like last week.
“I’d support the community in trying to get something there. I’ve raised it with the roads department already and am hoping that once Covid restrictions ease up we can meet the traffic officers there and show them what it’s like.”
However the local authority insist their data shows the road does not need traffic lights, but added they are in talks with Police Scotland regarding the amount of speeding there.
Head of roads and transportation for SLC, Colin Park, told us: “We have completed traffic surveys in this area and examined road traffic data in response to recent concerns.
“The evidence gathered indicates that the road layout and current crossing facilities are appropriate for this road.
“Our survey results show traffic calming measures are effective in keeping vehicle speeds down however we did identify that average speeds do exceed the mandatory 20mph limit.
“We have raised this with Police Scotland who will undertake enforcement action commensurate with their other duties.”