Petition launched to help elderly cross 'busy' Sheffield road

Mary Redican, who lives at Windsor House, brought the petition to a full council meeting, calling for a pedestrian crossing at 900 Abbeydale Road – which sits opposite the home. So far it has gathered 60 signatures.

In the meeting, Ms Redican said: “We request measures to be put in place to allow a safe route for pedestrians to cross the road to enable them to use the bus service and local shops.

“The residents are mainly elderly and disabled or have limited mobility and therefore find it difficult to cross the very busy main road enough to avoid the fast traffic which has resulted in a number of near misses.

“The mobility of the residents means the crossing at Tesco and Archer Road is too far away for them to use. The road is wide with three lanes including a bus lane, making it very busy and presents a risk to pedestrians and drivers who may need to stop quickly for pedestrians.”

Councillor Bob Johnson, cabinet member for transport and development, said: “It’s always a concern when we hear of, particularly the elderly, having problems crossing busy roads and I’ll give a commitment to you today that I’ll come out with officers and meet you and see what measures we can put in place.

“Unfortunately, generally, if it’s a large scheme it’ll end up being ranked against other priorities we have in the city but that doesn’t necessarily mean to say there isn’t something we can put in place to make things better.”