Agenda item

To receive any petitions in accordance with Standing Order 65. An officer response will be provided to each petition.

The Local Committee (Runnymede):

(i)            Agreed that the proposed closure of Weystone Road at its junction with A317 Weybridge Road is not implemented at the current time.

(ii)           Agreed that the safety record of the junction of Weybridge Road with Weystone Road and Hamm Court continues to be monitored to determine whether the recent improvement in safety is maintained.

(iii)          Agreed the implementation of safety improvements at the junction is reconsidered if the recent improvement in the safety record is not maintained.

Two petitions were received which related to the proposed closure of Weystone Road and which was intended to be covered as part of item 10 of this agenda.  Both petitions had been generated as a result of a consultation having been carried out by the County Council’s Road Safety Team to gauge support for the closure of the road. The Chairman decided to bring this report forward when addressing both of the petitions and as a result, the decision has been recorded below as part of this item.

Having reviewed residents’ feedback (including the two petitions) and the most recent safety data, the Road Safety team were recommending that the closure was not implemented at this time.

The first petitioner, Mr Vink outlined his position.

He reported that the residents’ association had contributed £30,000 for surfacing and signage of this road as it was recognised that the road provided important access.

He stated that he believes that the road is used not only by residents to access their homes but by those who visit as part of their work (such as carers and nurses) and those who visit recreationally, such as walkers and fishermen. In addition, there were concerns about emergency vehicles and community buses not being able to reach their intended destinations as a result of the closure.

The second petitioner, Mr Wolstenholme outlined his concerns. Firstly, he expressed that he felt the consultation on the proposal had not been long enough or widespread enough to be effective and that this may have led to residents being unaware that this closure had been suggested.

Secondly, he felt that the accident data that had originally brought about the proposed closure was not sufficient to have validated the measure. More incidents have been reported on a nearby street than for Weystone Road and yet no recommendations had been made to remedy this on that road.

Mr Wolstenholme suggested that if any improvements were proposed in the future to improve safety on Weystone Road then additional lighting, signage or the installation of a mini roundabout should be considered.

Tim Oliver, divisional member for Weybridge whose border lies very close to this junction was invited to the committee and asked to share his views. He stated his support for the petitions and reiterated Mr Wolstenholme’s request that other methods to improve safety should be considered should this proposal be readdressed in the future.

The Area Highway Manager explained that this road came under the spotlight as a result of a sudden increase in incidents in 2014 that gave officers cause for concern and led to the proposal for a road closure being investigated. This is turn led to the consultation. The level of objections received prompted the officers to review the most recent data and found that the 2014 figures appeared to be a spike that was not reflected in subsequent years. Therefore the Road Safety team revised their plans to proceed with the closure and the recommendation is not to proceed at this time.

The Area Highways Manager acknowledged the alternatives that had been put forward but advised that mini roundabouts can be difficult to implement as they need a wide area of space in which to be installed. This would need to be fully assessed if taken forward in the future.

It was noted by the committee that often there is queuing traffic as you approach this junction from Weybridge and that additional signage may be useful to alert drivers to this possibility as they approach. 

The Local Committee (Runnymede)

(i)            Agreed that the proposed closure of Weystone Road at its junction with A317 Weybridge Road is not implemented at the current time.

(ii)           Agreed that the safety record of the junction of Weybridge Road with Weystone Road and Hamm Court continues to be monitored to determine whether the recent improvement in safety is maintained.

(iii)          Agreed the implementation of safety improvements at the junction is reconsidered if the recent improvement in the safety record is not maintained.