Locals on a street in Norwich have branded the short speed bumps installed by their council a ‘waste of money’ after campaigning for years to get a proper set of traffic calming measures
Residents have been left baffled after newly-built speed bumps they spent years campaigning for were made too short in height.
Locals along Mousehold Avenue in Norwich, Norfolk, have branded the traffic calming measures a “waste of money” after the council splashed out £7,336 on creating them.
Red-faced council officials said their contractors will return to raise the speed cushions soon. Locals had raised concerns about motorists speeding through the 20mph road, saying the lack of controls was an “accident waiting to happen”.
Locals said many cats have been badly injured and they were worried about the safety of children walking to school. Ruta Ramaske, 47, said: “It’s been a waste of money because it has not done anything. I wanted them put in but they do not seem to have slowed drivers down.”
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Sarah Everett, who also signed the petition and is grateful the council took up their pleas, said: “For all these years, the situation has been an accident waiting to happen. We thought that if there were some level of speed calming, it would help make the road safer.”
The speed bumps were backed by councillor Julie Brociek-Coulton who has been campaigning for more than two years to have them put in. The council then agreed to install three sets of speed bumps on Mousehold Avenue on August 11, which saw the road closed for one day.
But after the resurfacing works were complete, the council were soon made aware the speed cushions – a traffic calming device where one section in each lane is raised – were not built to specification.
Roger Carr, 74, believes the speed bumps are not causing “much resistance”. He said: “They were definitely required but people are still speeding down the road. It’s a 20mph area and only a small percentage of drivers stick to it. We’re waiting to see if they make any improvements.”
Christina Green, who has lived on Mousehold Avenue for 21 years, says the speed bumps being installed have helped because drivers who see the markings are forced to slow down anyway.
The 63-year-old said: “Drivers get to the speed bump, slow down and then speed off again. But before they used to just fly down the road. This area has improved since they were installed.”
Mark Fenton suggested the bumps be turned into speed tables, where the surface across the width of the road is raised. The 65-year-old said: “We’ve still got cars speeding over them but I will say that people who see them ahead will slow down. It would be better if they were all crossing tables.”
Norfolk County Council confirmed the speed calming measures will be made higher at the expense of the contractors who built them. Cllr Julie Brociek-Coulton said: “It’s great to see that the speed humps will help slow down speed and improve the lives of those who live on Mousehold Avenue.
“Many thanks to the Norfolk County Council highways team who have worked with us on this project and will be making the speed humps a bit higher soon.”
A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said: “The new speed bumps were installed by our contractor. However, we soon identified that these had not been installed to the required specification.
“We contacted the contractor immediately who will be revisiting the site to rectify the issue at their own expense. There will be no extra cost to Norfolk County Council.”