Schoolgirl's zebra crossing campaign nears goal

7 hours ago

Ana da SilvaWest of England

News image — Paul and his daughter Amalie have been campaigning for a zebra crossing to be installed near her school

BBC A dad and daughter stand next to each other in front of a BBC Radio Gloucestershire banner. They both wear glasses and smile looking at the camera. The girl has a fringe and wears a light blue cardigan while the dad wears a beige jumper. — Paul and his daughter Amalie have been campaigning for a zebra crossing to be installed near her school

A fundraiser to install a pedestrian crossing near a primary school is nearing its goal after intense campaigning and lobbying from parents and pupils.

A petition to get it installed is led by a pupil at Leckhampton Primary School, and follows concerns about road safety and reports of drivers speeding on nearby Church Road in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

Amalie, 12, and her dad got local authorities to agree to fund £68,000 for the crossing and the pair have created a crowdfunder for the extra £7,000 needed to cover the remaining costs.

"I'll be really happy when it's finally built cause it's taken a lot of time and energy to get to this point," said Amalie.

A narrow and busy road in a residential street with lots of cars passing both ways, pictured on a nice sunny day. The sunlight shines on the orange brick terraced houses that line up the road on one side, while on the other a side a pavement is clear of any pedestrians. — Church Road in Leckhampton is busy during the school run

She told BBC Radio Gloucestershire they had been putting up flyers and posters in the area, trying to get people to hear about the campaign and to donate - but they were still short of about £3,000.

"People have wanted a crossing on Church Road for many, many years. We're now almost at a point where we can make it a reality," said Amalie.

The cost of installing the zebra crossing is set to be £75,000.

Gloucestershire County Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Leckhampton with Warden Hill Parish Council agreed to partially fund it.

Amelie's dad, Paul, said it took "a lot of work" and "lots of meetings" with the local authorities to get to that stage.

He said: "It became clear that whilst children's safety was a priority, because no one had been killed or injured [on Church Road], it was a much, much lower priority."

Gloucestershire County Council previously said it would continue with the plan to install the crossing despite there being no serious incidents.

"We don't want to wait until somebody is hurt. We want to get this done as soon as possible," councillor Martin Horwood said.

Amalie's campaign for a safe school crossing

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