Covid-19 Areas of city have seen fewer than three cases in a week

FOUR areas in Bristol recorded fewer than three Covid-19 cases in recent days, latest Government data shows.

The last time this happened was more than two months ago at the beginning of December.

Clifton Village, Cotham, Westbury Village and Crews Hole recorded fewer than three coronavirus cases in each area in the seven days to February 18. When cases fall below three in small areas the exact number of cases isn’t revealed in official data to protect the identities of those who do test positive.

The last time that happened in Bristol was in Crews Hole, Knowle and Hotwells in the seven days to December 3.

Eight areas in North Somerset and three in South Gloucestershire also recorded fewer than three cases in the latest data set.

All areas in the Bristol region are continuing to record infection rates below 400 per 100,000.

The areas in the region with the lowest infection rates (The number of actual positive cases of Covid-19 in the seven days up to Thursday, February 18, is shown in the list below, with the average case rate in brackets)

Bristol

» Clifton Village – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Cotham – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Westbury Village – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Crews Hole – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Redland & St Andrew’s 3 (28.2)

» Clifton East 3 (33.3)

» Knowle Park 3 (36.6)

» Lockleaze 3 (39.5)

» Monks Park 3 (44.8)

» Westbury Park 4 (46.9)

South Gloucestershire

» Alveston, Olveston & Oldbury – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Winterbourne – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Longwell Green & Oldland Common – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Thornbury North 3 (36.8)

» Emersons Green 5 (41.2)

North Somerset

» Pill & Easton – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Portishead South – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Portishead Central – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Portishead Redcliffe – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Nailsea East – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Clevedon North & Walton – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Clevedon Central – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» Mid Worle – fewer than three (data suppressed)

» North Worle 3 (32.1)

» Clevedon South & Yeo – 3 (38.8)

» Winscombe, Langford & Blagdon – 4 (47.4)

COUNCILLORS have blocked an attempt to add a shop driveway to a major road in Bristol where a young woman was killed by a drunk hit-and-run driver five years ago.

Megan Brogan, 27, was on a pedestrian crossing on Hatchet Road in Stoke Gifford when she was hit by a speeding car and died at the scene on January 19, 2016.

Jake Mitchell, 25, was found to be more than twice the legal alcohol limit and was jailed for five and a half years after he pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving and failing to stop at the scene of an accident.

Ms Brogan’s death still haunts the community, which rose up in opposition to plans to add an “unnecessary” and “dangerous” road access directly off Hatchet Road to serve an empty shop, a South Gloucestershire Council planning committee heard.

Stoke Gifford Cllr Brian Allinson told members he had “rarely encountered an application that has caused such concern and alarm locally” in nearly 20 years as a councillor.

Community members were particularly worried about the safety of schoolchildren who walk to and from schools in the area, the meeting heard.

Developer Danolly Limited applied to create a new access off Hatchet Road to a car park outside the former Co-operative store in a small shopping precinct.

An agent for the applicant told committee members the Co-op closed for the “sole reason” the existing entrances to precinct from North Road and Hatchet Lane did not bring enough customers to make it “viable”.

Willow Mercer said the retail unit needed an entrance that was “visible” from Hatchet Road to attract passing customers and that there were no “proper planning objections” that would stand up at a planning appeal.

Council officers who recommended the application for approval conceded they were unable to oppose it on road safety grounds.

It was “broadly the same” as a proposal refused previously, they said, but the developer had proposed cross hatching on Hatchet Road at the junction with the new driveway and provided a “desktop” road safety audit showing there were “no material hazards”.

But members of the planning committee were persuaded by the passionate arguments of local councillors and residents, some of whom spoke at the meeting.

Stoke Gifford Parish Council and 33 residents lodged written objections to the application, saying it would increase traffic, congestion and the risk of accidents for pedestrians and other road users.

Cllr Allinson, who has lived in the area for 37 years, said the proposed new entrance was “totally unnecessary” and he objected to it in the “strongest possible terms”.

“[Hatchet Road] is an arterial road, it is a major route which carries all of the traffic through the area,” he said.

“Any additional entrance onto that road is dangerous and is very much objected to by almost the entire community. The Co-op is gone. This is merely an application to improve the saleability of that empty property.

“There are already two perfectly serviceable entrances into that area which everybody knows about and everybody uses.”

Parish councillor Andrew Shore said the new entrance would cause delays and queues on Hatchet Road and increase the risk of accidents.

“In particular, it would put schoolchildren in danger,” he said.

Seven of the nine-strong planning committee voted to refuse the application. Two members abstained.

PHOTOGRAPH: JONATHAN MYERS People enjoying a rare spell of sunshine in Broadmead this week

Megan Brogan, 27, was on a pedestrian crossing on Hatchet Road in Stoke Gifford when she was hit by a speeding car and died at the scene on January 19, 2016