Saffron Walden traffic plan should be given red light

THERE has been a significant event in the on-going saga about traffic lights at the top of Borough Lane.

At the most recent planning meeting, WeAreResidents.org presented accurate accident information for the last 15 years. It showed that the junction did not have a dangerous history and so residents urged the scheme to be stuck.

Shortly after the meeting, councillor Tracey Chapman, Essex cabinet member for Highways, responded in a letter to Uttlesford councillor David Watson. She indicated that because there had been no reported personal injury collisions since February 2008, the junction no longer met any of their Safety Engineering intervention criteria.

This means that Essex have now conceded that lights are not required for either safety or traffic volumes, having earlier conceded the latter point. These two things were the original and only rationale for lights.

WeAreResidents.org have now written to Uttlesford indicating that lights are not required because Essex have now withdrawn their safety concerns.

Residents have made it clear they don’t want money wasted; they want an alternative scheme green-lighted, one that scraps lights and replaces them with a pedestrian crossing and better visibility.

Dan Starr

WeAreResidents.org