Since the accident parents, teachers and residents have criticised the use of the road, which combines parked cars, motorists and children getting to and from three different schools.
A campaign has been launched for School Road to be closed from 8am until 9.30am and between 2.30pm and 3.30pm.Thus diverting all the traffic elsewhere, meaning that deliveries will have to be rescheduled, etc, etc.
And all for this one incident:
Witness Kyra Turnbull was walking along the street with her children Olivia, seven, and Alfie, eight. She was just feet away from the accident.She said: “The one in hospital is my little girl’s best friend.
“When she saw it happen right in front of her, she could not stop screaming.
“They have known each other since she was three.
“This morning she was asking, ‘will it happen again today?’ “You don’t want your children to be scared. We were just feet away. The lady with me was a nurse so she knew what to do.
“The emergency services were amazing. The paramedics were there almost instantly and the firemen just lifted the car right off her.”It sounds pretty scary, yes. But why should the immediate knee-jerk reaction be the closing of the road?
Campaigners also want a school crossing patrol back in Monkwick Avenue. Petitions are now going around local estates.
Mrs Turnbull is supporting the call to get the road closed.
She said: “The road just needs to be shut. It is the only way to stop something like this happening again.
“This would not have happened if cars did not go down there.”Really?
Because as we can see in the comments to the previous report of the accident, speed or inattention on the part of the driver may not have been the issue:
CarlaMarie78 says...
My thoughts go out to all involved in this horrific accident. Praying that the little girl is ok. Having known the driver of the car since I was 4 years old I can tell you she is a lovely lovely person and had very good reason to be driving That morning and believe me she is absolutely devastated over whats happened. Before we judge tho it is also children's parents responsibility to teach road safety and if your child doesn't know this then they should be accompanied safely to wherever they are going. It was an accident where a child walked right out in front of the driver and could have happened to anyone. I feel for all parties involved as it was not the child's fault she wasn't supervised by a responsible adult as much as it wasn't the drivers fault this child walked in the path of the car.
And should remain that way.
14 comments:
Hmmmm. So the road is called School Road. It has three schools in it. It presumably has signs featuring pictures of children. If the lovely lovely driver couldn't stop in time methinks speed and/or inattention was almost by definition an issue. But, hey, I'm just a poor ignorant non-driver.
Happy Christmas and keep up the good work in 2012:-)
http://goo.gl/QzPJt
The picture captioned "Road traffic officers examine School Road after the accident outside Monkwick Junior School" seems to have the cars around that roundabout.
http://g.co/maps/8v3hb
For some distance either side of that roundabout there are "School Keep Clear" markings.
I don't see how 'parked cars' would be a problem in this scenario unless drivers were ignoring them.
"a child walked right out in front of the driver" ... when this happens, how the hell is it the fault of the driver?
It does not matter how much attention she was or was not paying to the road, if someone walks out inside your reaction time there is no way to avoid them.
I nearly ran a brat over who was cycling on the pavement at right angles to the junction. Only my cat-like reflexes saved him. On another occasion I nearly hiy a cyclist on the road, in pitch darkness and he had no lights.
I wonder how many parent's had parked on the yellow zig-zag 'keep clear' lines, had parked up on the pavement and / or had parked on both sides of the road causing stop/go traffic and reducing general visibility around the school entrances?
Amazing.
The only class of people who get a by for putting a little girl in hospital are people driving cars.
The idea that perhaps we are a little too wedded to those bloody steel boxes doesn't occur.
A little girl SHOULD be able to walk to school. Cars render this dangerous. This is why we have an obesity epidemic: our children aren't allowed out on their own, because our towns are built around cars, not people.
Little girls can walk to school. They just need to not wander out into traffic.
It's something that used to get drummed into my generation when we were growing up, via parents, lollipop men, Tufty and Darth Vader in his day job.
"A little girl SHOULD be able to walk to school. Cars render this dangerous. This is why we have an obesity epidemic: our children aren't allowed out on their own, because our towns are built around cars, not people."
What????
I'm aware that nowadays our roads are more crowded but to blame the non-existent 'obesity epidemic' on cars alone is a tad OTT don't you think?
I live in a street where traffic is very light, yet for years now I haven't seen any kids playing outside. Compare this to about 10 years ago when the street was full of kids playing football.
There are many other factors than just cars - XBoxes computers and TV for example, and not least the whinging NIMBY's who can't stand the sight of a bunch of kids playing harmlessly.
If you close the road, how will the poor mites be driven to school? How can all those cars delivering the kiddies park outside the school?
Perish the thought, but they may have to walk.
Think of the shoe leather!
WV= dorkses = people who 'want something done.'
Why not close all roads? Then there will never be an accident ever again.
No one need ever own a "steel box" (though I prefer the term "mobile shagging parlour," myself) and think of all the money we'd save, how there'd be no pollution, no need for tarmac, no revenue for the guvmint, no need for petrol (goodbye, Saudi Arabia!), no food delivered to Tescos, no need for anyone to ever play Grand Theft Auto again...
Oh, the joy of closing roads!
"If the lovely lovely driver couldn't stop in time methinks speed and/or inattention was almost by definition an issue. "
No, not if - as the commenter claims - the child darted out from between parked cars (which as PJH points out, shouldn't have been there).
"I don't see how 'parked cars' would be a problem in this scenario unless drivers were ignoring them."
Seen a school run lately? It's chaos, with a side-order of 'I'll park where I want, innit?', as Ranter points out.
"It does not matter how much attention she was or was not paying to the road, if someone walks out inside your reaction time there is no way to avoid them."
Spot on!
"Amazing.
The only class of people who get a by for putting a little girl in hospital are people driving cars."
No, actually I'd have had the same sympathy for a horse rider, motorcyclist, hell, even a pedal cyclist in the same situation.
"A little girl SHOULD be able to walk to school."
No-one's denying that, are they? Of course she should. And if she crosses at a crossing, she'll be safe.
"It's something that used to get drummed into my generation when we were growing up, via parents, lollipop men, Tufty and Darth Vader in his day job."
I wonder how much of today's accidents are caused by the unthinking behaviour of children who've been convinced -by modern parenting methods - that they are supreme, and everyone else must accede to their every whim?
"...but to blame the non-existent 'obesity epidemic' on cars alone is a tad OTT don't you think?"
Well, quite!
"If you close the road, how will the poor mites be driven to school? How can all those cars delivering the kiddies park outside the school?"
It's the precedent this sets, plus the disruption it'll cause as traffic (yes, Jackart, even cyclists! Or will they just ignore it, as they ignore red lights and one way streets?) seeks other routes.
Ripper,
No point talking to Jackass, he's one of those twats you see all dressed up in dayglo lycra.
Makes it easier to see him. So you can run the twat over.
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