Garstang Road, which connects Pilling with Garstang, is a particular hotspot for speeding.

One resident recently told me that they have had to stop using the bedroom at the front of their house because the noise is intolerable, and they no longer bother standing their photo frames back up when they constantly fall over. Others are too scared to walk their dog, or do not get visits from elderly relatives because the road feels too unsafe to park on.

I am therefore delighted that after I highlighted the severe impact this is having on residents with Lancashire County Council, they have agreed to install new anti-speeding signage on the road to remind drivers that they are in a residential area and that they should drive safely.

While I would have liked to have seen more substantial intervention, this signage is much needed and I hope that it makes a difference.

I will be keen to see how driver behaviour changes once it is in place next year and I will follow up with the council as necessary.

The full response from Lancashire County Council was as follows:

“I am sorry to hear of the concerns raised by residents as a result of poor driver behaviour close to their homes. I can understand and share their desire for road safety.

As you may be aware, the county council works closely with the police as part of the Lancashire Road Safety Partnership to target locations where casualties and speeds are higher. If there is an evidence-based speeding issue, the county council will look to introduce mitigation measures.

As a result of the investigation of the casualty and speed data for Garstang Road, we have prioritised the instalment of temporary signage to help remind drivers to think about their speed during the period of January to March 2024. We will then re-erect the signs during the period of July to September 2024 to maximise the effect of the message.

It is worth pointing out that speed management is a multi-agency discipline. The county council, as the highway authority, are the responsible body for setting speed limits on the highway network. However, the police have responsibility for enforcement of speed limits, enforcement is not the county council’s responsibility.

[Residents] may benefit from the ‘Community Toolkit‘ which gives examples of how local residents can raise awareness of speeding and road safety issues in their local area and is available on the Lancashire Road Safety Partnership website.

If residents witness future incidents of nuisance or dangerous driving, I would urge them to contact the police directly either by the non-emergency telephone number: 101, or on the Lancashire Constabulary ‘Do It Online‘ webpage, ideally with a record of the registration numbers of the vehicles.

They can also submit footage directly to the police through Op SNAP, for their consideration. Op SNAP is a police response to the increasing submissions of video and photographic evidence from members of the public, in relation to witnessed driving offences. Further information regarding this service can be found online: Op SNAP.

It is unclear which bus stop residents are referring to where members of the public stand partially in the carriageway. However, we would always urge pedestrians to stand clear from the carriageway whilst waiting for a bus. Currently there are two school services on Garstang Road, running twice per day. Unfortunately, in the absence of a regular public bus service, we are unable to justify the introduction of a sheltered bus stop at this time.

In relation to [resident]’s comments regarding the current level of lighting on Garstang Road, as you may be aware, we have no statutory duty to provide street lighting; many roads throughout Lancashire are either partly or wholly unlit. Our focus is on the replacement of structurally defective columns and the renewal of ageing lighting stock. As such, we are unable to prioritise requests for additional street lighting columns, or increased levels of lighting currently.

Finally, in reference to [resident]’s suggestion of the property shaking, vibration induced in properties from passing traffic can be disconcerting. However, it is unlikely to cause structural damage in our experience. Our historic vibration tests never reached thresholds where damage would occur, according to the British Standard.

If residents do believe ground borne vibrations are damaging their property, we respectfully ask that they provide evidence first, ideally in the form of a structural engineers report. They can send this evidence directly by email at: highways@lancashire.gov.uk where we will then investigate further.”

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