North Kellyville Public School: parents fear for childrens’ lives at Hezlett Rd crossing
Parents are fearing it will take a series incident, or the death of a child, to see safety measures improved at a Sydney public school following three near misses this month.
Hills Shire
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“It is going to take a child to die for someone to act”.
That is the opinion of North Kellyville residents fearing for the lives of children using a pedestrian crossing outside a newly-opened public school.
Kellyville resident Gloria Hill told the Hills Shire Times she almost lost her “entire universe” last month, when a speeding motorists, “blew through the pedestrian crossing as my family were more than half way across the crossing” outside North Kellyville Public School on May 30.
“The driver didn’t slow down, didn’t stop, and continued to speed down Hezlett Road, not caring that my entire universe was very nearly wiped out by their action,” she said. “The North Kellyville Public School pedestrian crossing is poorly located, poorly designed, poorly signposted and poorly lit.
“Visibility is extremely low, and a lot of drivers claim they are not aware of the crossing until they are almost on top of it.”
Mrs Hill said Hezlett Rd isn’t a disaster waiting to happen — “it is a disaster now” — and is calling on The Hills Shire Council to install increased safety measures “to save lives”.
She and other members of the North Kellyville Public School community are calling for a raised pedestrian crossing, signage, increased lighting, parking restrictions and footpaths to be installed along Hezlett Rd.
Following the near mission May 30, alongside a series of accidents on the dangerous stretch of road since the school opened in February, Mrs Hill contacted The Hills Shire Council, State Government, RMS, Hills Police Area Command and the Pedestrian Council of Australia.
Following the concerns from parents, A Hills Shire Council spokeswoman said council was taking steps to progress on upgrade works for Hezlett Rd, North Kellyville.
“In addition to successfully advocating for the installation of lighting at the pedestrian crossing located near North Kellyville Public School, pedestrian refuges have also been constructed to improve safety while road reconstruction is progressing,” the spokeswoman said.
“The undergrounding of power is happening now and is expected to be completed by the end of July.
‘And the design for the road reconstruction is nearing completion, and once finalised, the next step is to procure a contractor through tender to undertake the road reconstruction.”
The spokeswoman told The Times council is considering a range of additional short-term measures to improve safe traffic and pedestrian flows around North Kellyville Public School.
“While ongoing works are happening we encourage motorists and residents to exercise caution and be safe while driving on our roads,” she said.
IN OTHER NEWS
The Hills Police Area Commander, Superintendent Jason Joyce, said he recently received an inquiry from Castle Hill state Liberal MP Ray Williams about an accident on Hezlett Rd last week.
“We have not really received many complaints directly to us in regards to Hezlett Rd and the pedestrian crossing at the School,” he told the Times. “We have however discussed some concerns with The Hills Shire Council in regards to that location.
“What drivers need to do is drive to the conditions and obey the 40 km/h speed restrictions when they are operating — drivers also need to slow down when approaching a pedestrian crossing so they are prepared to stop if required.
Supt. Joyce said drivers should drive with caution around schools, “regardless whether it is school zone time or not”.
“It is fine to complain about the road conditions but the responsibility is on drivers to ensure that they drive to the conditions,” he said.