Village's push to reduce speeders

Alan Roughley

A CAMPAIGNING community leader who is determined to solve traffic confusion in Saddleworth's most isolated village says "small steps" could lead to progress.

Alan Roughley, chairman of Denshaw Community Association, was speaking after a top-level meeting with highway chiefs and Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth.

Denshaw is a main gateway for Oldham, Greater Manchester and Yorkshire, a vital link to other local communities and a focal point for diversions if there are problems on the M62. But Mr Roughley, a former Oldham and Saddleworth Parish councillor, says the village is plagued by drivers ignoring speed limits and massive gridlocks whenever there are motorway diversions.

He said: "We cannot stop traffic passing through the village but we are campaigning for someone to get a grip of both problems.

"Our 1,000-strong community would like to regain something of village life, where we actually feel safe to walk around."

Responsibility and funding for road works is spread between Oldham Council, Manchester City Region, Greater Manchester Police, Highways England and the government. At the meeting Oldham Highways showed an option which would cost £500,000 and bring a five-way traffic light system at the village crossroads, with sophisticated sensors on each approach road.

Highways England, responsible for motorways and diversionary routes nationwide, said in a statement they are reviewing all diversions nationwide and will test revisions with a pilot scheme in each region.

Signs

Meanwhile, Oldham Highways are proposing, from a very limited budget, to paint speed restriction roundels on each of the five roads and install more repeater signs.

'This would remove the excuse for drivers that they did not know they were in a restricted area," Mr Roughley added.

"It's a case of many small steps, persuading agencies to accept responsibility, devise effective solutions and then find the money to carry them out. The crossroads are tricky and the majority of vehicles, from 40-ton trucks to pedal cycles, cheerfully speed down these steep hills."

A further meeting is planned for September.