Despite a petition of over 1,200 names and a well attended public meeting, Council road safety officials have said they intend to take no substantive action the speed of traffic on Bo’ness Road.
We are extremely unsatisfied with the lack of commitment to making tangible improvements with our requests for a pedestrian crossing or traffic calming measures having been declined. This position has been endorsed by the SNP/Labour Administration as it has been mentioned briefly in a Council paper from the Transport Convenor.
Considering the strength of local opinion and the numbers who both completed the survey and who attended the meeting, this is clearly a very real concern for the community. Even if the monitored numbers don’t result in a score high enough for the standard process of recommending improvements, the very unique nature of Bo’ness Road, being so close to the much faster routes at the Queensferry Crossing, and the layout of the road being so long and wide, should all have been enough to secure real changes for the safety of our children and vulnerable residents.
We have now written to the Convenor of Transport, and to Cllr Work as the Administration’s representative in Queensferry, inviting them to attend a follow up meeting to explain their reasons and justify their position, as well as take questions from the many residents who are looking for answers. We look forward to their response and intend on booking a meeting, back at the school, as soon as possible.
In the meantime the Campaign Group, led by Babs Shaw, wish to add their voice to ours and to raise their concerns at the highest political and managerial levels of the Council.
- Here is the full response from the road safety team
Can the crossing assessment times be altered?
No as the base data which is used to assess if a location is suitable for a crossing is known as the PV2 value. This is a nationally recognised value that indicates the number of passing vehicles and pedestrians. Pedestrian and vehicle counts are taken over the peak hours of a week day between both 7am to 10am and 3pm to 6pm, and avoid any school holidays or other factors which may skew results. These times generally represent the busiest periods for pedestrians and vehicles and give the highest assessment results. These times also include school entry and exit times.
Can we have a pedestrian crossing outside the school?
The assessment process generates an adjusted PV2 value, which is used to determine whether improvements are required to crossing facilities and the most appropriate type of crossing facility for that location. The predominant factors in the calculation of this value are the volumes of pedestrians crossing the road (P) and passing vehicles (V) that are recorded in the surveys that are undertaken. These give a base PV2 value, which is then adjusted by a series of factors that take account of:
• the numbers of children using the crossing point
• the numbers of elderly and disabled people using the crossing point
• the numbers of buses & HGVs passing the crossing point
• pedestrian accidents within the last three years
• the width of the road
• the speed of passing traffic
• the number of nearby trip-attractors (e.g. schools, shops, leisure and community facilities etc.)
A location with an adjusted PV2 value of 1 or higher (2 or higher on a dual carriageway) would be considered for a puffin crossing, locations with a value of 0.3 or higher would be considered for a suite of measures that includes a zebra crossing, a refuge island or pavement build-outs. If a very low PV2 value is achieved no additional crossing facilities may be recommended.
I can confirm that a crossing assessment was recently undertaken in October 2017. This resulted in a low adjusted PV2 value of 0.110. Therefore, no additional facilities will be implemented at this time as the build outs that are in place are acceptable for the crossing demand.
Can speed cameras be installed?
Police Scotland is responsible for the delivery and operation of the Scottish Safety Camera Programme, which is funded by the Scottish Government. The Scottish Safety Camera Programme Handbook 2015 sets out the rules and guidance for the programme in Scotland, including criteria that apply nationally and require to be satisfied before safety cameras can be considered for installation.
Can Bo’ness Road have a 20mph speed limit applied?
The current 20mph network was approved by the Transport and Environment Committee on 13 January 2015. In developing the network, a consistent approach was applied across the city using a set of criteria to establish a network of 20mph streets in the city centre, main shopping and residential streets while retaining a strategic network of roads at 30 and 40 mph on key arterial routes.
The introduction of the citywide 20mph network is a major project for the Council, taking in a high percentage of streets. It is likely that as a result of surveys, monitoring and public feedback, there will be some post implementation adjustments. This may involve further changes to speed limits, both within 20mph zones and possibly on some strategic routes which have retained higher speed limits. Comments raised through this consultation in relation to a reduction to 20mph are being recorded which will form a review of the project. The results of this review will be reported to Transport and Environment Committee in Spring 2019.
I have passed on to the 20mph team the desire that those present at the meeting had for Bo’ness Road to be reduced to 20mph.
Carry out Speed Survey’s on Bo’ness Road and Builyeon Road to influence enforcement if required.
Bo’ness Road (outwith PT20mph) shows an average speed of 31.1mph over 7 days. This does not raise any cause for concern on a road with a speed limit of 30mph.
Bo’ness Road (within PT20mph) shows an average speed of 27.8mph over 7 days. This again does not raise any cause for concern on a road with a speed limit of 30mph. However, the 5 day average recorded speeds during school entry and exit times, when the PT20mph limit was operational was 26mph. This therefore shows that enforcement is required to remind drivers of the part time 20mph limit.
The locality team have agreed to cut back any vegetation that may be affecting drivers visibility of the part time 20mph signage.
Can Vehicle Activated Speed Signs (VASS) be installed on Bo’ness Road?
A report was presented to the Transport, Infrastructure and Environment Committee on 4 May 2010, which approved a set of criteria for the future use of this technology. Unfortunately, Bo’ness Road has failed to meet the criteria for VASS to be installed.
Can links to all council approved processes that the Road Safety team work to be provided?
Pedestrian Crossings – http://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/download/meetings/id/8638/pedestrian_crossing_prioritisation_process
Independently of the 20mph Programme, the Road Safety Team undertakes an annual collision investigation into all streets within the City. From this analysis it is possible to determine locations where the collision rate is giving cause for concern and where road safety remedial works may require to be implemented.
These remedial works are targeted at priority locations and spending is targeted towards areas which will have the greatest potential for collision reduction benefits. This needs to be seen against a level of almost 1200 collisions in Edinburgh every year.
Bo’ness Road has not been identified as a site for concern through this process.
Why do other schools in South Queensferry have traffic calming surrounding them?
The traffic calming around the other schools in Queensferry was installed as part of the Safer Routes to Schools programme, which was carried out in the mid-2000’s. The streets surrounding Echline Primary (excluding Bo’ness Road as it was classed as a ‘main route’) were all included as part of this work.