The Bradley Stoke Journal

Can we hope for any improvement in the 8:30 to 9:00 traffic nightmare on Wheatfield Drive? As ever, this is caused by the school drop, not the new, much-disputed building development.

The traffic calming squeezes serve only to make the situation more dangerous. On school days, a steady stream of traffic enters the street, creating virtual gridlock. Those dropping off their kids frequently park on the street for a considerable time. The upshot of this is that we who live there have to negotiate a nightmare obstacle course in order to get to work.

A simple, low-cost suggestion, short of removing the traffic calming, would be to introduce give-way priority in the traffic calming for cars EXITING the street towards the roundabout on Brook Way.

Ideally, the parents and school would organise a drop off and walk to school scheme operating from, say, the ALDI car park.

South Gloucestershire Council has started a second round of public consultation on its proposal to install a raised table road hump at a zebra crossing in Pear Tree Road, Bradley Stoke.

The exercise, which runs until Wednesday 23rd November, relates to the statutory notice that the Council is required to publish before constructing the road hump.

According to the notice, the proposed hump will extend over the full width of the carriageway and be 13 metres in length and 75 millimetres (maximum) in height.

Plans released as part of the consultation show that two new “humped crossing” warning signs will also be installed.

The proposals were put forward after a new Travel Plan for the nearby Holy Trinity Primary School identified an increase in the number of drivers failing to stop at the crossing.

More: Plans may be viewed at Bradley Stoke Library »

Hundreds of metres of cable trenches are currently being dug around Bradley Stoke, to provide power to real-time information displays at bus stops on the ‘showcase’ 73 route.

The work began in April last year, when the stop opposite Bradley Stoke Surgery was first to be connected to the grid.

Money from central government is being used to provide the displays, through the Greater Bristol Bus Network (GBBN) project.

Electricity cables from the stops are being connected to street lamp bases but in many cases the lengthy trenches can be seen to pass several other lamps along the way.

A worker installing a cable to a stop on Brook Way, near Hawkins Crescent, where a street lamp stands directly behind the stop, told a Journal reporter that connections had to be made to lamps controlled by Western Power Distribution rather than South Gloucestershire Council (SGC). As the lamps on Brook Way belong to SGC, a 50+ metre trench has had to be constructed to reach the “right” sort of lamp in Hawkins Crescent (photo).

Anyone going to Clifton from Bradley Stoke Mon-Fri for work and want to share petrol costs?

If not, do you know of any carshare schemes in operation?

Daniel 07805 669648

The driver of a bus heading for Bradley Stoke stopped his vehicle at Parkway Station and refused to continue his journey, according to a report in the Bristol Evening Post.

Ten passengers on the last number 73 bus from Bristol City Centre to Patchway (via Bradley Stoke) on Friday night were told to get off the bus and find their own way home.

A spokesman for bus operator First told the Evening Post:

“We are currently investigating the issues surrounding the events of the night of 8th April in relation to service 73 and apologise for any inconvenience and distress caused to our customers on the journey in question.”

Read more: Bristol bus driver refused to continue journey & told passengers to find other way home

Related link: Bus Services in Bradley Stoke (The Journal)

BBC Bristol reports that South Gloucestershire Council has confirmed that it will cease funding for speed cameras in the district from April.

The Council currently contributes £144,842 funding to the West of England Road Safety Partnership, which in turn funds Safecam, the body that operates road safety cameras on its behalf.

A Council spokesman is quoted as saying:

“The council is committed to road safety and the cameras are just one element of a wider strategy.”

“Education, training and road engineering all contribute to making South Gloucestershire’s roads amongst the safest in the country.”

Read more: Speed cameras in South Gloucestershire could be axed (BBC)