Traffic accident Melbourne Grove 7th January

[JanetD]

I witnessed a traffic incident yesterday in Melbourne Grove at around 12.55pm. A parked black Ford Ka was damaged by a passing lorry. The lorry did stop (I was taking photos) and left a message on the windscreen. I couldn?t find out who owned the car but if anyone reads this and there are any problems I have photographs of the lorry and car.

[rch]

It would be useful to know where on Melbourne this accident happened, as I am beginning to work with local residents and councillors on addressing the narrow road issues causing accidents on the south side of Melbourne. There are also some historical issues that can be addressed, so any information on accident locations can be useful illustrations.

There are a multitude of different solutions for the traffic problems on the north side of Melbourne, but there are different criteria on that side.

[JanetD]

Sorry I don?t know the area well I was just passing by so I can?t really say which bit of the road it was on.

[rch]

Hi, thanks for your reply, was just wondering if it was at the train station end or the Lordship Lane side... but both sides have weird problems, albeit different causes. I see accidents outside my house at the junction of Melbourne and Colwell Road (at the Lordship end) regularly.

[JanetD]

I have sent the photos I have to Helen for the residents association.

[macutd]

Surely Melbourne Grove is No different than many of the other roads in the area?

[Jamming]

RCH

I would be interested in what are you were discussing in terms of this problem.

J

[creditwheredue]

The failure of the council to put the double yellow line on the inside of the right angle turn in Colwell Road is one of them.

[rch]

Firstly... thanks again, Janet. I've now seen the photos and understand the location and the problem. It was great that you took the photos and that the lorry stopped and left a note, so hopefully the damage can now be repaired with an insurance claim.

Macutd... the difference between Melbourne Grove and other roads is that it's too narrow here for some cars to pass when cars are parked on both sides of the road. There needs to be passing spaces inserted at the junctions at minimum, which would help enormously. The council proposed doing this with extended double yellow lines but it was blocked by councillors. Instead, a small fortune was spent on dysfunctional consultations and up-grading the existing speed cushions to speed humps. But, not only is this not addressing the actual problems, but it's causing other problems. We've been saying for YEARS that the car damage isn't caused by speeding (which has regularly been measured at an average speed of 19mph), but by the narrowness of the roads.

Jamming, there's one specific location where special Thames Water sewer flood control pump mechanisms in the road along a specific terrace could be damaged by implementing speed humps, thereby causing intense internal flooding, so we have been discussing other legal methods of speed control works which could also accommodate some of the passing problems. FYI, there are three legal ways to control speeding in a 20mph zone... 1)speed humps, 2) buildouts on a junction corner, and 3) pedestrian islands. Speed humps are the most problematic.

Yes, creditwheredue... residents voted in a highways consultation for the double yellow lines at the Colwell junction, but councillors objected. As much as I hate ugly double yellow lines, it's even more distressing watching regular road rage damage incidents outside my house, which other local residents are also witnessing.

Slowly but surely, me and other residents are uniting to try to get Highways and councillors to understand the problems, which will inevitably cost more council funds to address. This has been going on for DECADES...

[Penguin68]

It's also worth pointing out that Melbourne Grove is a sat nav route from DKH towards the South Circular at Forest Hill - missing out a whole section of Lordship Lane. So it is driven by drivers unused to the area, often in inappropriately large vehicles. This exacerbates an already difficult situation.

[macutd]

well i live on a school rat run and school parking area. We all have issues with living in the area. But when one road is given special treatment, it just makes it even worse for the rest of us.

[tiddles]

if you widen the road (by reducing parking) it will speed up traffic. The narrowness in most cases makes people drive more slowly and cautiously.

do not fiddle pleeeeeeeease