A DANGEROUS Hampshire road needs a new pedestrian crossing to ensure the safety of parents and children walking to school, say campaigners.

Families living on Northlands Drive and nearby roads in Winchester who want to walk to St Bede Primary School say they cannot safely cross Worthy Road.

A pedestrian crossing they say, would slow down vehicles exceeding the 30 miles per hour speed limit coming down the hill and having to brake just past Arthur Road.

The location of a possible crossing has not yet been decided but could be north of the current island by Arthur Road, which concerned residents hope will improve safety for the elderly, the disabled and those with young children.

Parent Ben Duxbury, of Salcot Road, said: “We have to run the gauntlet of crossing this busy road with children on a daily basis.

“I have experienced the stress of crossing the road with groups of young children via the islands and have had a couple of near misses.

“Attempting to cross with buggies and scooters or bikes is also incredibly challenging as they often don’t fit on the island itself, particularly with young children in tow.

“The height of the signs in the middle of the islands also block the view and eye-line of the children.

“One local parent is wheelchair bound and struggles to cross the road every day with her children, often reliant on cars giving way in order to let her cross.

She also cannot see over the signs in the middle and often has to peer round them, pushing herself into the road at the same time.”

He added that the heavy traffic flow at peak times could also increase further with the Barton Farm development being built off Andover Road.

“People often comment that pedestrian crossings only get built after there has been an accident or fatality,” he said.

“However, this is not acceptable and we want to ensure that safety is given the highest priority by the county council. Nothing is more important.”

Cllr Rob Humby, executive member for environment and transport at Hampshire County Council, said: “Our officers met representatives from the community and completed an initial site assessment at the end of last year. The next step is to carry out an exercise to identify the number of pedestrians and vehicle. – a ‘PV2 survey’ which is the widely recognised criteria used to determine the requirement for crossings.

“This will take place in the spring, when the number of pedestrians is likely to be higher than during cold and wet winter months.

“As well as the number of pedestrians, the survey will take into account the type of pedestrians using the road, such as children, older people and disabled people; and the speed limit, width of the road and accident history will be looked at.”