“There’s going to be an accident at some point”, residents living in Newport have warned, following reports of dangerous driving and parking near the town centre.
Katie Kirby and Debra Greening, who live on Hearn Street, last night (Monday) told Newport and Carisbrooke Community Council’s (NCCC) Full Council meeting a “really nasty accident” was waiting to happen.
Councillor Julie Jones-Evans, who represents Newport Central on NCCC and at County Hall, agreed not enough has been done to improve road safety in the area and said a previous measure to install a sign for elderly people crossing was “pathetic”.
Kirby: There’s going to be an accident at some point
Katie told the Community Councillors,
“In our road, we have a set amount of parking on one side.
“Unfortunately, most people have got multiple cars and they are now parking on the junction at the bottom of Hearn Street that joins to Caesars Road to the point where there’s been multiple near misses and they’re there day in, day out.
“There was one there this afternoon and it’s always at the same time – right when the children finish school.
“A lot of the high school walk down Caesars Road, cross over Hearn Street because it’s one way and then they go off to their houses. There’s going to be an accident at some point.
“We’ve been involved with parking – they come round and ticket – we know of one car that’s had a ticket every day since 10th June 2024.
“We do see a lot of people speeding – they speed down Hearn Street. They’re speeding round from Foxes Road and they almost crash because they don’t realise that the bottom bit of Hearn Street that bends into Caesars Road is two-way.”
Greening: You can be standing there waiting to cross and they don’t stop
Debra added,
“From Foxes Road, where the pedestrian crossing is, that’s a danger point. I’ve been on that pedestrian crossing twice and I’m not the only one.
“I’ve got halfway and the car’s gone straight across the zebra crossing. If you’re waiting to cross at the top of Foxes Road, the hierarchy of road users says that if you see somebody on a junction there, you give way.
“They don’t give way, all they can see is the road ahead and they go straight down.
“The same thing happens coming down from Mill Street where the Crocker Street junction is.
“You can be standing there waiting to cross and even though the sign that they see is for elderly people, a warning sign, they don’t stop.”
Jones-Evans: The community council has put money aside
Councillor Julie Jones-Evans, who represents Newport Central on NCCC and at County Hall, said,
“Mill Street, Foxes Road – I’ll take that bit first.
“I’ve been campaigning for 12 years to get something done, it’s terrible. We never wanted that road to open up in the first place.
“I was promised – ‘if it gets bad we’ll put a crossing in, no problem’. It’s never happened.
“The community council has put money aside. We’ve got it in our earmarked reserves now to go towards doing something in that area.
“Mainly around that junction – Mill Street, Crocker Street – it’s really bad around there.
“I did meet with officers just before Christmas to say we’ve got to try to something. It’s sounds like a lame excuse and I am ashamed.
“Just putting that sign up for elderly people crossing – that was pathetic really – all I was able to within the power that I had.”
Councillor Jones-Evans added she had contacted Mark Downer, the Isle of Wight council’s parking manager, after being notified of problems on Hearn Street by Ms Kirby and said it was “completely on her radar”.
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
