On behalf of Marchmont and Sciennes Community Council I wish to object to the proposed TRO/06/131 which prohibits motor vehicles from the northern section of Meadow Place for 24 metres.Blocking access and egress from Meadow Place to Melville Drive will cause greater congestion and confusion. In particular we are concerned that the junction of Marchmont Road and Melville Drive which is already a busy junction will become more dangerous with more cars having to use that junction as the only viable alternative. There have already been a number of accidents and at least one fatality at that junction and increasing the use can only exacerbate the problem. In particular there is a difficulty in turning right onto Melville Drive. The traffic on Melville Drive is fast flowing and there is usually a queque of traffic trying to turn right into Marchmont Road. As well as dealing with a busy junction motorists have to deal with the pedestrian/cycle crossing less than 20 yards from the intersection in Marchmont Road and another to the east in Melville Drive at the foot of Meadow Place. A number of residents use Meadow Place to access Melville Drive because of these difficulties. We fear that there will be even more fatalities. The junction is seldom quiet and there already a dangerous mix of pedestrians, joggers, cyclists and motorists all trying to use the one area of the road.If traffic lights with right/left filters and a yellow box were proposed this would help since crossing at the junction would be co-ordinated for all users. At present there are too many options on the one junction with motorists having to watch for gaps in the traffic to move, cars coming from all directions and two very busy pedestrian/cycle crossings being controlled by users.Anne LairdVice ChairMarchmont and Sciennes Community Council2 August 2007
Sunday, 5 August 2007
RE: TRO/06/131 MEADOW PLACE EDINBURGH
Anne wrote:
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2 comments:
I am very disappointed with the CC's stance. Meadow Place is a dangerous rat run. It crosses a bike lane and walk-way and, at both ends (Melville Place and Marchmont Road) makes already difficult junctions all the more challenging, especially for vulnerable road/public space users. I cycle there frequently and can testify that "close shaves" are all too common. Closure of Meadow Place will make the area significantly safer, as well as contributing to efforts to encourage people to cycle and the improved health, environmental and transport benefits that go with that. The CC's take on the matter is ill conceived, embarrassingly driver centric (e.g. why do you state that only motorists have to deal with the difficult junction? How bad must that be for vulnerable road users?). I urge you to think again and to support proposed closure.
Looks like Anne was correct in her predictions.
The closing off of Meadow Place to cars and road traffiic has led to a significant increase in the number of cars queing up to turn right onto Melvile Drive and has also made the junction even more dangerous for ALL users.
RER - You could hardly call it a "rat run". It was used as a more efficient way of turning right onto Melvile Drive. Also for your information the bikelane and walkway crosses the road not the other way around.
Perhaps if you payed attention whilst cycling and kept to a resonable speed you might have avoided these so called "close shaves".
The cost off installing the current bollards to block access cost in the region of £5000. Worth it? I think not.
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