Vulnerable road users (From Gazette & Herald)

Vulnerable road users

MARCH 6. Gazette & Herald headlines this week point to the vulnerable road user, the pedestrian, and a driver lays claim to the charge that there is a large amount of jaywalking (to coin an Americanism) in Malton. Isn't that strange - I've always thought local folk were remarkably well-schooled in crossing the highway. Almost every day, as I wait at traffic lights, I am amazed at the patience of people waiting, forever it seems, to get to the opposite side.

Of the four local market towns, Malton has the most traffic movements, and the other three don't have anything like the problems there are here. So many factors affect the actions of people, both on foot and in vehicles, and so many end up taking a chance. Yet despite all this, there are relatively few vehicle-pedestrian collisions, thank goodness. Interesting statistics on this subject are that if a pedestrian is hit by a car at 20mph, nine out of ten of them will survive. Once the speed gets up to 30mph then half of the pedestrians will be killed.

This needs bearing in mind by the drivers who are incapable of moving forward in the town in a reasonable manner, but must do so with the foot hard down, in the lowest gear, and then the need to apply brakes hard to stop at the junction ahead. Showing off - and just bad driving. Town speed limits should be no greater than 20mph for, without doubt, it is speed which kills.

Incidentally, the Danish town of Christianfield was having pedestrian casualties and, in a bold move, every road marking, every road sign and every warning was removed from the intersection, and all that drivers and pedestrians had to rely on was eye contact.

Since the scheme was completed, there have been no serious accidents. Vehicles move across the intersection at 10-15mph and, above all, tail-backs at peak hours are significantly shorter. A favourite local phrase used by traffic planners is, "to make an intersection safe, you must make it dangerous." Why of course - but with the blinkered thinking in the UK I can't see it happening here - unless .....! Have you noticed that if there is an air or rail crash there are headlines, and high-echelon people say their piece, yet every year there are 3,500 folk killed and over 37,000 seriously injured on Britain's roads, which just raises a transitory mention in the media and, apart from the sorrows of those involved, things just go on.

I noticed some large letters on a hoarding in the street today condemning Ryedale planners who, it seems, haven't fared very well by national standards, and then today I also read the report of the "scuppering" of Mr Iain Dale CBE's plans for the conversion of buildings into a retirement home for himself and his wife. I read the refusal "reasons" which didn't really make sense to me, and all seemed to be a lot of mumbo-jumbo. It must be particularly appalling when anyone with a history of being an ambassador for his country has his dreams torn apart by bureaucracy. I appreciate that planning regulations are complex, but in the end they have to be administered by laymen, and once one person has come forward with a negative response then it seems so easy for others to follow. Twas ever thus. In local government especially.

I do not know Mr Dale, nor Mr Geoff Bean, who also appears to have fallen foul of the "system". I do know Mr Bean's farm, and have cycled through it many times, and appreciate his problems, for his land and buildings lie on both sides of a narrow country lane and, in winter, the lane tends to take on the appearance of his farm yard. Unavoidable, I should think. A proud-to-be-English farmer is Mr Bean. He used to have a sign on his buildings for all to see saying: "Only English spoken here, along with pounds and ounces etc". Well, something like that. He isn't having any truck with that continental stuff which is being foisted on us but, like Mr Dale, his own folk have turned on him, because having purchased some hardcore for filling up a dutch barn floor, etc, and having had it dumped on his concreted area of land, he has become guilty of breaking the Environmental Protection Act, without a waste management licence. Just how does one manage to live today without someone jumping up and saying "Stop"? Come to think about it, it's always been a bit like that. I remember during the war, when our newest aircraft carriers were being completed at Barrow in Furness-Indomitable and Indefatigable I think. The town was getting bombed, and our Anti-Aircraft Brigade was rapidly dispatched to help defend Barrow, which we did to the best of our ability. Defences were increased quickly, including guns, searchlights and balloons. We pitched our tents where we could and had a busy time, day and night. My troop officer being driven towards Walney Island in his "Tilly" with one of my mates as driver was pulled up by two policemen in their vehicle for speeding. This was much to their surprise for they were just chatting as they were going along, and at the time weren't in a rush. And their speed? 32mph. My chum had to go to court and was fined ten shillings (a lot of money then) and it was an expensive 2mph for helping to defend Barrow. The PC visited us on our AA site and apologised, saying that had he been on his own he wouldn't have pulled our driver up, but having a police officer with him he felt obliged to do so. Just a memory now!

The State. "Is a collection of officials, drawing comfortable incomes so long as the status quo is preserved. The only alteration they are likely to desire in the status quo is an increase of bureaucracy and of the power of bureaucrats." Bertrand Russell (1872-1970).

Updated: 11:04 Wednesday, March 19, 2003