Walking to school could be safer for Dundee children as driving prohibitions are given the go ahead – but do the closures work or will it ultimately lead to more problems for residents?
Councillors approved plans on Monday to introduce part time road closures for non-residential drivers on streets near several city schools during pick up and drop off times.
It is hoped the intervention will lead to a reduction in dangerous parking which has plagued families in the city for years, while also encouraging children to walk, cycle or scoot to school.
Entire streets around Fintry Primary – Findcastle Street, Findcastle Place, Finavon Terrace and Findcastle Terrace – will be closed between 8.30am and 9.15am and 3pm to 3.30pm on school days.
A temporary school travel officer will be recruited to help monitor the scheme in conjunction with the council and Police Scotland.
Local concerns
Fintry Community Council has objected to the initiative, which would also restrict access to the Finmill Centre and neighbouring library, stating that the town is not the right area for such measures.
Some of the main contentious issues include the exclusion of blue badge holders from exemptions, concerns over displaced traffic and whether the prohibition was enforceable.
“We genuinely want the best for the area but we believe this is wasting money because it will cause more hassle.”
Simon Redmond
Parent Simon Redmond, treasurer of the community council, told us: “The issue wasn’t really around the volume of traffic. It’s more that there are narrow streets with a lot of cars parked and you can’t get past if another is coming the opposite way. It forced people to go onto pavements or driveways which causes arguments.
“It’s not going to alleviate that issue because if it’s outwith the restriction time and you’ve got two cars coming at opposite ends, they’re still going to meet in the middle and it’s dangerous.
“A one-way street would be a lot easier to police and it would be a lot calmer and controlled. It’s a massive area which is just going to displace traffic onto the main road.
“We genuinely want the best for the area but we believe this is wasting money because it will cause more hassle.”
How have pedestrian zones worked elsewhere?
Pedestrian zones have been in place at Forthill Primary, Broughty Ferry, and St Mary’s Primary in Lochee since 2013, and have been hailed as a success by the council.
However, Mr Redmond says the council must not base decision on schools with differing neighbourhood structures.
These existing pedestrian zones have been hailed by Dundee City Council as a success.
“Forthill Primary is a one-way in and one-way out and that’s why it’s so easy to do there,” he added. “It’s not four streets, shops, a neighbourhood and community centre.”
Broughty Ferry Councillor Craig Duncan said the scheme is generally obeyed thanks to ongoing efforts to educate drivers. However he said issues will always exists because of a “minority of careless drivers”.
Meanwhile, the whole of St Mary’s Lane, Lochee, is off limits to road users during pick up and drop off times. But in both cases, the school streets are one-way and do not have residents living opposite.
The expert opinion
However, school street closures can have a positive effect on tackling a host of road safety problems, according to public health expert Dr Adrian Davis.
Dr Davis, transport and health professor at Edinburgh Napier University, produced a report assessing driving prohibitions at existing schools across the UK, including four exclusion zones in Perth and Kinross.
Alongside increasing active travel among children, the total number of cars across the street closures and neighbouring streets reduced, the findings revealed.
At Luncarty Primary, in Perthshire, there was a 33% decline in vehicles within the exclusion zone in the morning timeframe and a significant increase in active travel.
And where motor displacement did occur on to nearby streets, consistent evidence found that it did not cause road safety issues. Local authorities also introduced mitigations to reduce the displacement.
“We could make the roads a lot safer for our children by just doing this little thing for an hour before and after school.”
Dr Adrian Davis
He urged Dundee residents to persevere with the change given its proven influence on increasing active travel.
“Once people see the closures in effect they are generally in favour of it when they see that a lot of their concerns do not materialise,” he said.
“It’s about winning people over to try something different. The bog standard we’ve got at the moment is driving down active travel levels. We’ve got more congestion and more pollution.
“The national figures for active travel are already depressing. At a city level, it would be really good if Dundee citizens could give this a go.
“We could make the roads a lot safer for our children by just doing this little thing for an hour before and after school. It seems like a big win for a small, possible inconvenience.”
Downfield Primary, in Kirkton, has also been earmarked for priority intervention, alongside Craigiebarns Primary, North East Campus, Coldside Campus and St Andrew’s Primary.
Traffic issues at the Kirkton school have been ongoing for a number of years and parents say they fear it is an “accident waiting to happen”.
A parent’s view
Melanie Kiyani, of the Kirkton Community Partnership, has a daughter in P7 and welcomed the intervention.
“She said: “I think it’s a great idea because it’s an accident waiting to happen at Downfield.
“Cars just park here, there and everywhere and we at the community partnership totally welcome the idea of a parking ban.
“As long as it could be enforced then I think it would work. There are so many people that are within walking distance of the school but still choose to take their car.
“People park on the corner of the street opposite, block driveways and park on pavements. It’s a struggle at times if you’re driving one way because cars are parked on both sides.”
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