Concerns over new school streets traffic ban trial

Concerns have been raised about traffic and safety a month into a trial restricting vehicles on roads around two schools at pick-up and drop-off times.

Oxfordshire County Council's school streets scheme started in Carterton in early September, and applies to Edith Moorhouse and St Joseph's Primary for two hours a day.

But parents, residents and the town council said the restrictions were having a knock-on effect on parking, with some warning it had created new safety concerns.

The council said it would "continue to monitor the trials closely".

Simon Garwood is town clerk at Carterton Town Council and said the scheme was not suitable for the area.

"We've put together a report of early findings, there's a real concern about displaced parking, children having to cross busy roads in between cars and there's now parking on pavements," he said.

The trial has a minimum of five months left, operating on school days during term time between 08:15 and 09:15, and from 14:30 to 15:30.

It is supposed to be monitored using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, but these have not yet been installed.

Caroline Owen, chair of St Joseph's School's parent and teacher association, said dangerous parking was becoming a regular occurrence.

"It's completely unsafe, It's caused more issues," she said.

"But where else should parents park? We don't know, that's the question."

Garwood said the town council understood the aim of the scheme was to make the roads outside schools quieter, but "parents need to stop somewhere".

Derek Maskell lives on one of the impacted roads and said it was "a major inconvenience".

"We can't have visitors when we feel like it, we have to register them with the council or they can only come at particular times.

"There must be other solutions out there like designated drop off points.

"All it's done here is push the problem to other areas."

Garwood said the council had "agreed to come and see some of the issues and if anything can be done to help".

A council spokesperson said the work to install the ANPR cameras would be be completed "as soon as possible".

They said: "Park and stride options (where a designated nearby parking facility is agreed and a safe school journey planned from there) support families needing to make car journeys beyond the school run.

"We will continue to monitor the school street trials closely to identify and address poor driving and parking practices."