Calls for Portsmouth 'rat-run' road to be made one-way with fears there will be a serious accident
A bid is being made by Hilsea residents to have their road designated one-way after seeing a huge increase in the number of motorists using it as a rat run to escape tailbacks caused by roadworks.
Residents of Oakwood Road say they have been experiencing an exponential volume of traffic using their road as a ‘rat run’ to avoid the ongoing and continuous roadworks on the London Road, with SGN upgrading the gas network in the area, and the ever increasing traffic into and out of Portsmouth.
The road links London Road and Northern Parade and some speed bumps are already in place to slow down traffic. However residents have had enough and said that the impact of the roadworks - as well as some parents ignoring restricted parking areas to drop off and collect their children from the nearby Trafalgar School - has led to them asking for changes.
It comes after two homeowners Paul Martin and Keith Merrett, supported by their local councillor Russell Simpson, decided to start a petition to see what support there would be to urge the council to implement a one way system from Northern Parade toward London Road.
To the surprise, they said 97 per cent of all the residents agreed and signed the petition. Keith Merrett added: “This must be one of the most unanimously supported petitions ever recorded certainly in Portsmouth!”
The residents have expressed fears that ‘sooner or later there will be another serious accident in our road’, as well as the view that that has been a growing number of incidents involving residents’ cars as drivers using Oakwood as a ‘rat-run’ have had to dart into small spaces to avoid oncoming cars.
Another resident said they were horrified recently to see a motorbike being recklessly driven along the pavement to avoid traffic on the road as well as aggressive behaviour from frustrated motorists. Residents have now begun keep a log of all damage caused to their cars.
Residents also complain of aggressive behaviour and in a few cases violence because their path is blocked by vehicles using both directions to avoid sitting in traffic.
On Monday (September 9) the petition was handed over by Paul Martin and just a few of the residents to Cllr Simpson. It is hoped he will present it to the relevant department and support the move onwards.
A spokesperson from Portsmouth City Council has confirmed that it is looking into the problems as well as considering a request to change the road into a one-way street.
He said: "We can confirm that we've received a request to turn Oakwood Road into a one-way street in March this year, which we are currently reviewing. We have a process for all requests for improvements to roads, whether received from councillors or residents.
“Anyone can email [email protected] to request changes to roads or transport in the city, and all requests are checked to see if any improvements are feasible or are already planned. All requests are scored on how well they improve safety and how they link to achieving one of the four main objectives of the Portsmouth Transport Strategy for the city.
“The highest-scoring requests will then be assessed to see if the work is feasible, to ensure that there is space available and that major routes can still function without creating a problem to neighbouring areas. If the feasibility study determines that the request is possible, then it is put forward for internal capital funding through the annual local transport plan allocation or for any external funding bids throughout the following financial years.
“However, it's not guaranteed that requests will receive funding to take forward. The final decision on which schemes are put forward for the next stage will be the responsibility of the Cabinet Member for Transport."