Plans to improve road safety at a busy junction near a Tynemouth school have been abandoned, prompting claims that children have been “let down.”
North Tyneside Council has decided not to proceed with the proposed alterations to the Huntingdon Place junction, which would have narrowed the road, added traffic calming, realigned paths and resurfaced the area. The decision followed a public consultation that ended in May.
Calls for safety works continue
Councillor Tom Bailey, Green Party councillor for Tyneside, said the current layout may pose a danger to pupils at Kings Priory School. He said: “We’ve let our children and the broader public down, again. The school will continue to need to devote extra staff time to supervising children crossing here, as it is struggling to resource teaching hours. If we can’t even upgrade a junction next to a school to a basic modern, national road safety standard, then I don’t know how we can achieve anything.”
Phil Welch, a local resident who has lived opposite the junction for 30 years, said many people, including wheelchair users, families with baby strollers, dog walkers and the elderly, often have difficulty crossing, particularly at weekends when Tynemouth is busy. He described the junction during school pick-up and drop-off times as “mayhem.”
Consultation and technical issues
The council said the consultation generated far more opposing views than supportive ones, with respondents preferring improved pedestrian crossings on Manor Road. However, further technical assessments identified “significant challenges,” including environmental impacts, loss of parking and the need for wider road layout changes, making the alternative plans unviable.
Samantha Dand, North Tyneside Council’s director of neighbourhoods, said: “However, we recognise the concerns raised locally about vehicle speeds and the importance of reinforcing the existing 20mph limit. As an immediate measure, additional 20mph repeater signs have been installed to make the speed limit more prominent and help reinforce it for drivers.”
She added that the council remains committed to improving road safety and will consider future opportunities in the area, using the consultation and assessment evidence to inform any proposals.
