'Vital' road safety scheme outside Shropshire primary school delayed due to water works

Work to bring in safety measures around Ludlow Primary School was scheduled to be completed in October, but it could now be next summer before it is finished.

“It’s frustrating but there is not much we can do about it," said Councillor Tracey Huffer, who represents Ludlow East.

Councillor Huffer said governors and councillors had been pressing for a road safety scheme outside the school, in Sandpits Road, "for years".

She said: "In the spring we agreed with Shropshire Council that a raised platform would be put in place outside the school to slow traffic down.

White and yellow lines would be refreshed and the uneven pavement outside the newly built Beech Gardens would be levelled up.

"The work was due to take place in September or October this year.

“This vital project has now delayed by several months by the Severn Trent Water (STW) Ludlow Whitefriars Flood Alleviation scheme."

Improvements

STW is having to carry out urgent work after frequent flooding of the bungalows in Whitefriars, near the school.

It will see new surface and foul water systems put in along 340 metres of Sandpits Road, including outside the school. Electricity cables and gas pipes will have to be moved at the same time to allow the works.

Councillor Huffer said: “If the road safety scheme had been completed on the planned timetable, it would now have to be dug up and reinstated, so it is better delayed until the utilities work is complete. No dates have yet been given but we expect the work to be complete by summer 2020.

“There are yellow zig zags outside the school to discourage people parking by the school gates, but these lines are not legally enforceable.

"I will be asking Shropshire Council to put in place a traffic order at the same time the safety scheme is installed to ensure that parking in this zone is an offence."

But there is some good news that has come out of the delay, as STW has agreed to build the raised plateau as part of its work on Sandpits Road.

Councillor Huffer also hopes the road will be less busy as a result of reduced traffic when Western Power Distribution relocates from its current depot at the end of Sandpits Road to a new site out of town near the Eco Park, which it has just been granted planning permission for.

She added: “It is disappointing this this important safety scheme has been delayed. But we will end up with long lasting improvements for both Whitefriars and Ludlow Primary School.”