Quick update on a number of highways-related queries that I've been following up on in the ward. Not the most exciting of posts I'm afraid, unless/even if you live on the bit of road affected.
Big pot hole outside 254 Brockley Road: I first reported this in January 2008 and was told that the owner of the forecourt would be written to and advised to make repairs. One year on, the hole was bigger than ever and still posing a hazard to pedestrians. I again asked and have been told "Our Highway Asset Manager will ensure that we remind the shop of their responsibility to maintain the forecourt in a safe condition and will pursue the matter until a repair is carried out". I've pointed out that the shops say it is the responsibility of the owners of the yard behind. I will continue to follow this up. I've asked whether the Council can carry out the works in default and put a charge on the property if the owners fails to do so, as it's a health & safety issue.
Junction of St Margaret's Road with Tressillian Road
In the recent heavy rains there was a huge pond of water here and clearly some kind of drainage problem. I've been told that the Highway Maintenance Team will inspect the gullies near the junction of St Margaret's Road with Tressillian Road and arrange for any that are not running clear to be jetted.
Road and footpath on Tressillian Road
I have reported the poor state of the footpath and road on Tressillian Road (specifically the lower section from Harefield Road down, which is in Ladywell ward) several times. I've been told that it is currently 25th on the Council's carriageway resurfacing list and Highways are hopeful that it can be resurfaced next year. They are also currently considering this section of Tressillian Road to be included on the footway reconstruction programme for 2009/10. So, fingers crossed, this should be done within the next year.
Missing street tree outside 154 Tressillian Road
I've been told that this "will be considered for a replacement tree next year". This sounds rather vague to me so I've asked for clarification.
Broken Bollards on Greatfield Close
There are a number of broken concrete bollards on Greatfield Close that pose a safety hazard if they were to fall on someone. For the past 18 months, since the Brockley PFI Housing contract was signed, there's been a certain amount of wrangling and passing the buck regarding responsibility for estate roads in the PFI area. It seems they don't come under highways remit or Regenter B3 but remain the responsibility of Lewisham's housing department, which can be rather slow to commisssion Highways to carry out the work.
All seems rather silly and convoluted to me and I think the roads need to be transferred to highways, otherwise the upshot is that the work never gets carried out. We have had the same hoo-ha with Viney Road and Dressington Avenue. Viney Road eventually got sorted after lots of prompting and I've been told the repairs will be carried out to Dressington Avenue in Feb/Mar of this year. We will continue to push for repairs on Greatfield Close too.
Brockley Grove/Huxbear Road Junction
There's always a problem with water pooling at this junction whenever it rains. Huxbear Road is non-maintained highway, whereas Brockley Grove isn't. I've been told that one of the highway inspectors will visit the area to determine the extent of the repair needed and will arrange what works are considered necessary.
Ladywell Road (particularly outside Ladywell Tavern)
The road here is in quite a state and the speed hump keeps breaking up. I've been told that highways have already done some repairs at Ladywell Road, but a're aware that these are of a short term nature. They've said that they are currently investigating the extent of the damage around the speed hump to determine the extent of further works; It may be that a road closure is necessary for the works to be carried out and if this is the case they will probably need to avoid the period when Blackheath Hill is also closed.
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3 comments:
the entire Brookbank Road is in a terrible state, holes everywhere. why is so much money being wasted on speed humps and not on making safe road surfaces?
Hi, thanks for your comment. A lot of the roads in this area are unfortunately in a terrible state, partly through years of underfunding and partly due to the hilly nature of the area creating subsidence problems etc. There is a limited pot of money for resurfacing them each year, so the Council Highways team prioritise the most urgent ones. Those on bus routes or with higher usage tend to move up the pecking order quicker than others, like Brookbank, with less through traffic. I will ask where Brookbank is on the prioritisation list though.
I'm not certain about this, but I think a lot of the funding for traffic calming works and 20mph zones, including speed humps has been funded at a regional level from TfL rather than from the Council's funds, but I would need to check that. Speed humps are a bit like Marmite in that people either love them or hate them, or fairly equal measure. They're a fairly blunt instrument, but the evidence shows that they do slow down motorists and ultimately save lives.
Sue, thank you so much for this. The pavement on Tressillian Road has been in a terrible state for ages so I'm glad to hear that it may be re-paved soon.
Also, thanks for pursuing the issue with the drain at the junction of St Margaret's Road and Tressillian Road. This floods very frequently when there is heavy rain, so the problem is quite a long-standing one.
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