South London locals are pushing for changes to a “terrifying” road where two people have died, saying the “clock is ticking” before another fatality.
Residents around Shooters Hill Road in Greenwich have sent a petition signed by over 700 people to Greenwich Council to add traffic safety measures to the busy street, with two people having died there since 2006.
Local resident Laura King, 44, has lived near Shooters Hill Road for 15 years.
She feels safer driving her children to the local primary school because she doesn’t feel confident walking them through the busy junction at Well Hall Road.
The mum told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “The secondary school kids are walking themselves to school or getting off the bus round the corner.
"And they have to navigate that on their own.
"It’s already terrifying as an adult, but when you’re a kid [it’s even worse]. Even as a non-driver, you’ve got no ability to judge speed and distance.”
Ms King, who started the petition, said she has heard silence from Transport for London on the concerns raised about the busy junction.
She said: “I had a friend who was killed by a driver while he was out running in 2019 in a similar sort of environment.
"I was just walking back from dropping the kids off [a few years later], and there was the aftermath of an accident.
"I thought if nobody else is going to [start the petition], someone’s got to.”
Daniel O’Loghlen, 43, is the secretary for the Shooters Hill Safer Neighbourhood Panel.
The local said one of his friends saw so many accidents from his home in Shooters Hill that he set up a camera in his window overlooking the junction.
He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “Frankly, it’s not nice to be woken up, let alone your children be woken up, by metal on metal in the middle of the night.
"Having to phone the ambulance because nobody has and hear the sirens, that’s not great.”
The petition was brought to Greenwich Council last month to be discussed by its highways committee.
At the meeting, the committee agreed to recommend a 20mph zone be added outside the local Christ Church School in the council’s 2023/23 work plan.
But, given TfL are responsible for the junction with Well Hall Road, council officers said they had to ask the authority to investigate how the dangerous crossroads can be improved.
Labour Councillor Danny Thorpe, who represents the Shooters Hill ward, said at the meeting on January 11 that the number of people who had signed the petition was a “clear indication” that there is a problem in the area.
He said: “There’s 10 people who have been injured or even lost their life [on the road], which is clearly a horrendous situation to be in.
"What we don’t want is any more accidents, we are going to need more action.”
Mr O’Loghlen said: “For me it’s just a matter of time until another person loses their life.
"I understand the budget pressures of the council, and I appreciate that they’ve listened to us, but when you know that the clock is ticking, it’s not a nice feeling.
"It’s a motivator for us to try and push this because at the end of the day, we want to make our area safer for our children, for our community, and for our school.”
A spokesperson for Greenwich Council said: “Our Transport Strategy identified Shooters Hill and Well Hall Road as a priority for Transport for London to investigate what measures would improve road safety.
"The council looks forward to receiving their proposals in due course. We’ll continue to assess the suitability for a 20mph speed limit as part of our speed review strategy.”
A TfL spokesperson said: “We remain committed to Vision Zero and the ambitious goal to eliminate all deaths and serious injuries from London’s roads.
"Following vital investment being secured as part of our latest funding agreement with government, we are restarting work on an ambitious programme of safety enhancement works and this site is on our list for review as part of the forward programme.”
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