Sat nav lorries put kids lives at risk

Aug 19 2008 by Andrew Welsh, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

A SHOPKEEPER who says roads restrictions are being regularly flouted yesterday sent out a plea to lorry drivers to drive responsibly near a Perth school.

John O’Donnell, who runs the West End Stores corner shop in Glover Street, said he fears a serious accident is inevitable unless heavy goods vehicles avoid the narrow thoroughfare, where a 7.5-ton weight limit is in place.

Pupils from Craigie School in nearby Abbot Street walk along the street’s narrow pavement on a daily basis to reach his shop.

“There are clearly marked HGV restriction signs outside my shop,” said Mr O’Donnell yesterday.

“I have tried stopping a few lorries from going along the road but they usually just carry on.

“I have contacted the police about it but obviously they cannot be up here all the time.

“A few people, including a neighbour, have been caught in the arm by a wing mirror.

“These HGVs are having to go up on the pavement, usually in the morning, in what is a very tight street anyway.

“Yesterday it was a low loader with a digger on the back passing right by the narrow pavement.

“If pupils are coming along to the shop and an HGV is going along the street there’s not much room.

“It happens Monday to Friday and it is just a matter of time before a youngster gets whacked by one.

“A chicane system is in place as a restriction, but the artics are using Glover Street as a rat run when they’re coming off Glasgow Road and taking steel to the new primary school at Glenearn Road.

“Their sat navs guide them along this way and it must happen between six and 12 times every day.

“The street was never built for that. Some properties have even got cracks down their walls now.”

Mr O’Donnell said he hopes police will remain vigilant after reporting his concerns.

“I saw the police turning an HGV away one morning,” he revealed.

Tayside Police’s Inspector Ken Brown said officers were keen to address the problem.

“We were contacted by a resident in Glover Street and have been monitoring the site for a while,” he insisted.

“As a result, companies whose vehicles have been taking short cuts have been contacted, and we have spoken to the council.

“The problem is, lorries come down Glasgow Road or up Marshall Place and there is nothing to indicate there is a weight restriction.

“Vehicles as heavy as 38 tons are following their sat navs to the mini-roundabout at Glover Street and then there’s nowhere to go.

“The problem is drivers only realise they cannot get through the route once they are fully committed.

“We know some take a short-cut chancing it and we have caught a couple.

“Hopefully when the council put something in place it may provide a long-term solution.”

A Perth and Kinross Council spokeswoman said residents of Craigie’s Raeburn Park had been in touch about motorists using their street as a short-cut when Glover Street is congested.

“We are following up on these concerns by examining the overall traffic management arrangements in the immediate vicinity,” she said.