Pavements R 4 People

Celebrating and improving the best district in Bristol

Posted by Des Bowring on 13 November 2007 at 11:56am

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God knows how Princess Anne will get up Richmond Road today what with the parking etc. Cars are parked all over the pavement. This morning I was very nearly felled by a car actually DRIVING on the pavement in St Andrews Road and no other traffic on the road at the time - I was just coming out of Monty park and he was only inches away. I shouted at him and he seemed annoyed that I should venture to criticise his driving! Motorists, eh?

Comment by Mr Cactus on 13 November 2007 at 12:31pm: How I agree! We have a real problem in Montpelier with cars driving too fast and on the pavements. I live in St Andrews Road a few houses up from station road. Cars often race up past here as the road widens out. Cars drive along the pavement on bath Road and Lower st Andrews Road all the time, especially dangerous near the park exit.No wonder Des was nearly pole-axed! Someone at I once asked the council about traffic calming and was told that they start to take notice if enough people contact them about it, At that time this forum was'nt in existence. maybe now is the time for us to start petitioning? After all lots of children live in the area. Sean

Comment by Dan Cook on 13 November 2007 at 7:35pm: St Andrews road is a bit of a rat-run. Someone at the meeting last night suggested petitioning for some work to be done on traffic calming on Picton Street. If we do that, I reckon we should add St Andrews Road to the list as well.

Comment by Suzanne on 13 November 2007 at 7:48pm: Other areas of Bristol, such as Southville and Totterdown, have had one-way traffic systems created on their streets and vehicles travel in a reasonably orderly fashion. Maybe it would be worth seeking something similar in Montpelier. A one-way loop around Richmond Rd and St Andrews Road, for example, could deter rat-runners, and also bring an end to the gladatorial stand-offs in which cars coming in opposite directions sit for ages revving their engines because neither wants to give way - or they cannot, because there's no-where to pull in. Parking seems to have become a lot more scarce since building work began at the old Audi garage, and this will presumably continue to be the case once the flats are built.

Comment by Dan Cook on 16 November 2007 at 11:47pm: Hi all,

I found a few links about the work that was done on The Dings as part of a Sustrans project called VIVALDI.

Try:

http://www.sustrans.org.uk/webfiles/Info%20sheets/Vivaldi%20Information%20Sheet.pdf

and

http://www.sustrans.org.uk/webfiles/liveable%20neighbourhoods/Traffic%20restraint%20and%20retail%20vitality.pdf

Comment by Suzanne on 17 November 2007 at 1:32pm: There are also links on www.streetsalive.net - plus other useful info. While there is probably no perfect solution, it seems there are ways to improve on the present situation (ranging from speed cushions and one-way systems, to something similar to the Home Zone traffic calming Dan has mentioned in the Dings)

Comment by rob on 21 November 2007 at 4:46pm: I have lived on bath Buildings for 12 years. In that time we ( and our old neighbours) have had our front wall actually driven into and in our neighbours case knocked down by maniacs driving down St.Andrew's Road towards Bath Buildings who are literally out of control.
Driving along the pavement here is almost an everyday occourance . I worry that my kids ( who know not too run out onto the pavement) will forget one day and by mown down by someone.
More recently I was out the front at about 8.45 ish (am) taking photos of this whole traffic problem ( as I would really like to do something about it) - a van comes up from Armadale Avenue and proceeds to drive along the pavement . So I take a photo of him . He pulls up directly outside my gate - on the pavement - and gets REALLY aggressive and is indignant that I have taken a photo of him. He gets out ( van still running ... on the pavement) and is immediatley scary enough to make me call the police there and then.... he even talks to the cops himself. He thinks the issue has got something to do with the unlawful taking of his image ? Presumeably driving down the pavement has got nothing to do with it. By the time the police ( Clare Gardner - Community Support Officer) arrive he's gone. BUT if someone can tell me how to put the photo up on this site then I'll gladly do it !.
Despite this long winded post it is a serious issue. It happens ALL THE TIME.

Comment by Des Bowring on 21 November 2007 at 6:01pm: That's a real horror story. What a b*stard!

Comment by Mr Cactus on 23 November 2007 at 10:53am: Bejavors, that's terrible! Mind you I have been abused and had insults hurled at me as I cycle up St Andrews Road causing cars to have to slow down behind me, I cant give way due to Cars being parked on the pavements all along the side of the play area, which is another very annoying problem as it causes people to walk out into the road to avoid them. Surely this is illegal? Cant those community police people give them a ticket or something?

Comment by Dan Cook on 23 November 2007 at 1:12pm: ...didn't happen to be a white van, did it?

Comment by Des Bowring on 26 January 2008 at 9:19pm: Is anyone brave enough to do this?:

http://www.livingstreets.org.uk/cms/downloads/0-anti_pavement_parking_flyer.pdf

Perhaps after a few pints!