As a person with first hand experience of travelling that road at school times, for a decade or more, I would like to say that this lollipop man NEVER puts his lollipop UP in the air, above the roof line of a car to announce he needs to step out. The previous lollipop man, and lady before that were fantastic, they gave ample warning that pedestrians needed to cross and cars needed to stop. With the greatest respect, this guy just jumps into the road with no warning at all and with pedestrians metres away so a driver doesn’t know if they are crossing the road or walking along Tean Road pavement. I have adjusted my driving and remain extra cautious when approaching, as I know this guy gives no warning. I feel some training would be VERY beneficial for all involved.
Written by cB, June 9, 2019 -
Fears over school patrol as drivers fail to stop
2 months, 18 days ago•3 Comments.
Fears over school patrol as drivers fail to stop
IMPATIENT motorists are putting children's lives at risk by driving around a lollipop man on a busy Cheadle road. Concerns over incidents involving the school crossing patrol in Tean Road were debated at a meeting of Cheadle Town Council on Monday. A letter from PCSO Mark Bridgwood raised “major concerns for the safety of the children and the school patrol.”
PCSO Bridgwood requested an urgent safety review of the site and said the school crossing patrol warden had reported an alarming increase in drivers stopping too close, failing to stop or driving around him.
At the meeting of the town council’s development services meeting on Monday, June 3, Cllr Martin Tighe, said: “I take it that Tom has been trained? In the Highway Code he’s supposed to put the head of the lollipop out to warn drivers that he’s about to step out.
“I also think that sometimes there’s too much time spent letting people cross, which creates the backlog.
“I’ve seen him stand there in the middle of the road with nobody crossing, but there’s someone 15 yards away and he waits for them.
“It could be six of one and half a dozen of the other.”
It was suggested the warden could be moved to the crossing nearby, but this suggestion had been rejected by Staffordshire County Council in the past.
Cllr Ron Locker said: “Children’s lives are most important. If there’s an easy route out then they will run for it. It’s not so long ago we were talking about losing our crossing patrols.
“I think we’ve got to ask the county council to ensure that they are doing the job as prescribed.
“There’s so much traffic and it’s so dangerous, we’ve got to do everything we can to ensure children’s lives are protected as they go to and from school.”
Concerns were also raised about the levels of traffic through the town in the mornings and afternoons.
Cllr Greg Powell said: “I’d like to highlight that there’s a real concern with what’s going on in Tape Street and Tean Road.
“The slow build up of traffic all the time – people are trying to get to work, queues are getting longer.
“People are basically desperate to get through Cheadle.
“That’s only going to get worse as the traffic gets bigger.
“We need to highlight to County Highways – that say we haven’t got any issues – there are consequences that we are seeing now with this build up of traffic.”
The council agreed to write to the county council to ask for a review at the crossing.
Cllr Richard Alcock added: “He’s got a job to do and he does it well. Some people won’t stop for anything.”
3 Comments
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Tom is a brilliant crossing patrol man...always pleasant and friendly and does a fab job on the busiest road in Cheadle!!
Written by Emma Seabridge, June 9, 2019 - -
I have to agree with Cllr Tighe, I've witnessed first hand in many occasions, the time that this individual allows people to cross for is far too long, does wait for people that are a few yards away, thus creating traffic build up and consequently driver frustration.
Written by Kelly Rushton-Martin, June 16, 2019 -
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