I think we should have more school crossing places, not less.

I can’t make a case for any of the patrols to be removed.

However, we’re in a consultation and some crossings have received more publicity than others. I’ve therefore used the opportunity that being a councillor gives me to make a special case for retaining the patrol at Barton Road/ Moss Vale Crescent.

And here’s my email to the consultation. I’d have loved to focus on other crossings, as well but in my view this is the most dangerous of all:

As these proposals put young lives at greater risk, I believe these cuts go too far. The council should be encouraging more children to walk to school rather than discouraging active travel by making the journey more hazardous.

However, I wish to make a special case for the patrol at the Barton Road/Moss Vale Road M60 circle junction. This is a particularly messy and dangerous junction on a bend. There are a number of aggravating factors at this junction including the speed and positioning of vehicles as they approach from the motorway. Buses have to take a wide radius and at the same time there are vehicles turning right onto Moss Vale Crescent.

This means that driver focus is often on simple navigation given the amount of hazards that exist here. I appreciate it is a pelican crossing, but the patrol officer in their high vis and sign is a vital component in managing the children and reinforcing the stewardship of the traffic.

I appreciate there are other patrols on busier routes. Sometimes it is not just the volume, it is the complexity of the traffic behaviour that adds to the risk and I believe it is particularly prevalent at this junction.

Sent from my Windows Phone

Mike Cordingley
Councillor for Gorse Hill Ward
Labour Spokesperson for Economic Growth
Transport for Greater Manchester Committee
Locality Partnership for Old Trafford and Stretford

www.gorsehill-labour.co.uk

Monday saw school crossing patrol protests taking place across Trafford. Including this one in Gorse Hill that Councillor Walsh and I attended. Nothing is more important than children’s safety. 

If people don’t wake up, they get left out. Disengagement means someone else takes the decisions. But who has the ideas? Why, you do of course!

Worthwhile video. We’re being actively disengaged all the time. Never forget that consultations are about managing engagement rather than seeking it out.