BEARWOOD, MERLEY AND BROADSTONE AREA COMMITTEE
6 April 2005
REPORT OF HEAD OF TRANSPORTATION SERVICES
York Road – Street Numbering
1.0Purpose of Report
1.1To consider a request for signs to Nos. 49-55 York Road.
2.0Recommendation
2.1It is recommended that the residents be invited to:-
a)Erect their own signs in the private access road, or
b)Rename the private access road
3.0Information
3.1Piecemeal development over many years has led to a very confusing street layout and numbering system in this area. In particular, Nos 49 – 55 York Road are accessed from a private access road between No 39 and the Baptist Church and the residents complain that their post and other deliveries often go astray. The ideal solution in these circumstances would be a comprehensive re-numbering of the whole of one side of York Road, but it this would effect so many other residents that it would not be appropriate.
3.2The Council provides and maintains street nameplates to guide the general public to find streets on the Public Highway network, but householders are responsible for providing numbers to guide callers to their individual property (indeed it is a legal requirement for householders to clearly display a number on each property). The owners of private streets would be expected to provide and maintain street nameplates to guide the public.
3.3Private signs have been placed, in the past, at the entrance to the private road to identify the properties that it serves. These have suffered damage from cars manoeuvring in the narrow entrance and from vandals. It would be difficult to justify using council funds to sign a private access, especially if there is a likelihood of taking on a significant maintenance commitment.
3.4It has been suggested that signs could be erected on the highway in advance of the access, to reduce the likelihood of damage, and that these could be combined with a warning of a concealed access. The Council receives a large number of requests for various types of warning signs, most of which are really more appropriate for isolated locations in rural areas. Highway Authorities are only allowed to erect signs that are contained within the Department for Transport’s traffic signs regulations and the worded “Concealed Entrance” sign is not permitted without specific Authorisation. The triangular junction warning sign could be used but government guidance emphasises that warning signs should not become so commonplace that drivers lose respect for them. In fact, this Council has adopted an anti-sign clutter policy whereby warning signs will only be introduced at areas with a proven accident problem. In this situation the private access road is only one of a series of accesses along York Road, and it would not be appropriate to draw specific attention to just one of them.
3.5A warning sign should be erected approximately 45m in advance of the hazard to which it refers; a street nameplate would be of little value if erected this far from the access, in fact this could introduce another source of confusion.
3.6An alternative approach would be to for the 4 residents/owners to agree a new name for the short cul-de-sac get this agreed by other statutory consultees and allow residents to erect road nameplates to full council specification.
JIM BRIGHT
Head of Transportation Services
Background PapersNone
Name and Telephone Number of Officer Contact