There have been numerous accident reports in Hindley Green over the years but one particular accident black spot has been well photographed and documented by a local resident Ken Ellison.
Ken has been documenting these incidents for quite a number of years.
Ken says "I have lived on Leigh Rd for 46 years and with the help of some neighbours, I have been campaigning for changes on this road for ages.
Ken said that this campaign became more serious when his wife was inches away from being killed on this treacherous bend.
Another resident, Jim Burtonwood said, "I have lived in this area all of my life and the traffic problems have never been as bad as they are today".
Just in the period from 2004 to date there have been 45 incidents on this corner of Leigh Rd near to the Industrial Estate.Residents have been campaigning for years to try and combat this situation.
Numerous walls have been demolished over the years, as well as damage to houses and fences.
Lamp posts and concrete bollards have also been damaged.Up to date some measures have been taken, i.e. scoring the road
Surface, skid tests by the police and more recently an electronic speed calming sign.
Sadly none of these measures have resulted in reducing the accident rate.
The residents of Leigh Rd in this area are literally living in fear for their lives.
Some of these accidents have resulted in serious injuries and it seems that it is only a matter of time before there is a fatality.
It appears that one of the main problems is, of course, the speed that cars travel along this stretch of road. And the fact that much of the traffic tends to go over the central markings.
Ken over the years has been in contact with Wigan MBC, the Police as well as numerous complaints through the local councilors.
He has recently been in contact with MP Andy Burnham who has promised to take this matter on board.
Ken brought this matter to the attention of the Hindley Green Residents Association at the October meeting.
HGRA had already written letters to the local Council regarding this matter along with other complaints about traffic issues in numerous other places in Hindley Green.
The authorities have been asked to put safety barriers in place on the very bad bend for the resident's safety but this has been refused on the grounds that there is insufficient room on the sidewalk.
Another suggestion was speed cameras. Again this was refused on the grounds of cost.
Consequently, the accidents keep on happening.
Hopefully the residents that are affected by this terrible situation can with the help of the Hindley Green Residents Association, local councilors, Wigan MBC and the Police, find a speedy and long lasting solution to this problem.
_________________________________________
Note:
Recent addition to this NewsletterSince this article was written, a new sign has been put into place in Leigh Rd as a traffic calming measure (picture right). Unfortunately it is directly in front of and therefore obscuring the original electronic speed sign. (As seen in picture to the left).
Traffic travelling from Leigh to Hindley Green cannot see the electronic sign until they almost right up to it.
_________________________________________