20mph zone planned for Silsden

Article from Keighley News – 16 Jan 2020

Plans have been unveiled to turn a large part of Silsden into a 20mph zone.

Dozens of speed humps would be placed in residential streets near the new Silsden Primary School under the Bradford Council proposals.

This would include streets running off Bolton Road on the Silsden Park side, and streets off Howden Road in the Daisy Hill area.

Howden Road itself would have speed-reducing ‘tables’ for the entire length between the Kirkgate and Hawber Lane junctions.

Residents became alarmed this week after seeing a blueprint for the traffic calming on the council’s planning website, as a supplementary document with the planning application for the school.

The road plan, by highways officers, shows road humps and 20mph signs on at least 18 streets.

The council this week stressed nothing was set in stone, saying: “These are only indicative draft proposals at this stage and further consultation will be carried out before any highways scheme for the streets around the new school is finalised.”

District and town councillors Rebecca Whitaker and Adrian Naylor this week spoke of the importance of having high-profile consultation open to local residents.

Cllr Whitaker said: “The plans look like speed bumps all over the place. There should be some sort of traffic calming, with 20mph signs on posts, but I don’t like speed bumps. People driving on these roads can’t go much faster than 20mph because of parked cars and the narrowness.

“At the end of the day the problem is that the school is in the wrong place, and access difficulties are causing problems such as this.”

Cllr Whitaker did support traffic calming on Howden Road – a major route into Silsden – after receiving many complaints from residents about speeding traffic.

Councillor Naylor called for a “proper, democratic, open and transparent” consultation where residents’ input could influence the design of the best possible traffic calming project.

He said: “My concern will be access for school buses as well as normal traffic. What about users of sports pitches in the park, and access for low-loaders for the gala?

“I would also like a comprehensive transport plan for the new school that explains everything that will happen.”