Last year ELC’s Transport team provided the community with drawings suggesting a number of road safety changes. Your Community Council wants to hear your views before a response is sent.
In response to these suggestions the Community Council set up a Roads Working Group (RWG) to review the thoughts and comments of local people which have come via this website, social media and through word of mouth.
The Roads Working Group now has a provisional response to the ELC’s initial plans which it is ready to share with you (see map below), before a final set of recommendations is sent to ELC Transport for consideration.
These include:
- A roundabout at the eastern entrance to Pencaitland to replace the current crossroads. The RWG agrees that this is a good idea but could be achieved without moving the War Memorial to a different location, as originally suggested in ELC’s plans.
- Road narrowing on the A6093 inside Pencaitland. The RWG believes this is unwise in light of the need for parking which already acts to slow traffic. Instead it is seeking the introduction of a painted cycle lane would achieve the same ends and benefit all concerned, at much less cost and disruption.
- Further restrictions on speeds should be considered in areas where there are large numbers of kids/pedestrians, in some cases (such as the B6363 through Boggs Holdings) with no pavements for a measure of protection from road vehicles.
Please share this information with your neighbours, especially those who are not comfortable using the web, and encourage everyone who has an interest in road issues around Pencaitland to send us feedback. Tell us your views via email to website@pencaitland.org, by replying below in the comments or simply leaving your views in a dedicated comments box that will shortly be found in the local Pencaitland Post Office.
What is the Roads Working Group proposing to ELC?
The issues surrounding traffic and pedestrian safety can be best summarised visually with the map below. Click the blue lines on roads or the markers to see details of what the RWG is planning to send to ELC. Whether you agree or disagree we want to know. Equally, if there are issues that you believe have not been picked up by the RWG please inform us.
If you find it too difficult viewing the map below, you can view a larger version by clicking this link: Pencaitland road traffic calming measures.
View Pencaitland road traffic calming measures in a larger map
A printed copy of the map and a list of the proposed responses to ELC Transport’s original suggestions will also be available for review at the Pencaitland Post Office.
I agree with Janet that the Boggs area needs a much reduced speed limit and a pavement.
I cannot agree with the roundabout proposal though. The issue with the junction just now is line of sight when approaching from Tranent to see traffic coming from the right. The hedge on the corner really needs to be moved back to allow you to see what traffic is exiting the village earlier. Building a roundabout will not do anything about the line of sight issue and change nothing about having to nose out further than you want to see what is coming as the stop line will have to move back up the hill to accomodate the turning area for any roundabout.
To slow traffic down coming into the village from Haddington direction, maybe a single road narrowing bollard with priority to traffic exiting the village would slow the traffic down significantly. Also this could be done at the same time as any surface relaying as no major groundworks should be required.
The recent near-fatal accident involving two primary school children on their way home from school along the Boggs Holdings Road (B6363) highlights all too tragically that Boggs Holdings residents and those using the road for leisure purposes do not have a safe route to school, bus stops, the village or the paths and trails in the Winton estate. Speed is certainly an issue on this road (though it was not a factor in the accident) and any measures to reduce it will be welcome, but even more importantly there is no footpath. Pedestrians, cyclists and others are forced to be on the carriageway and to cross regularly to maintain some visibility on the corners. The council conceded years ago that a footpath along the Eastern side of the road is feasible. It is time to act to prevent further serious injury or worse.