During the lead up to the 2015 general election members of the Labour Party stopped by and we chatted about issues that mattered to me and how I was planning on voting, writes JOELLE BRAITHWAITE.
The last question put to me before they left was what I thought about St Ann’s Lane in Burley being made one-way. I was a little surprised by the question, but almost without hesitation I declared “yes!”
I’ve lived on St Ann’s Lane for over four years. I love living here, it’s a great location for Leeds city centre, Headingley and Kirkstall.
We have great neighbours and we love our home. But I really don’t like St Ann’s Lane as a roadway. When driving, exiting our driveway can be treacherous.
Cars zoom downhill and the road is often blocked by large vans and trucks – once by a tractor! With cars usually parked by the shops at Burley Road, the entrance and exit to the lane is often obstructed, and while drivers try to be accommodating and courteous, things can get rather tense at peak times.
Then there’s the footpath… At the Burley Road end it is just wide enough to take the buggy we have for our little one. Pedestrians often have to jump onto the road to pass each other, and all too often vehicles are mounting the path to pass each other.
In one instance, it was early evening, dark, I was pregnant and a white van was trundling down the footpath toward me, hopping off at the last second.
I don’t want to be melodramatic, but St Ann’s Lane is unsafe.
It needs better traffic management. This may mean it needs to be made one-way. If not that, can the road be widened? Can the footpath be widened? Can proper parking spaces be created at Burley Road? Can the driveways have mirrors installed in order to help visibility of cars approaching? Can a weight limit on vehicles using the lane be imposed?
Residents have been talking about all this for a long time now and action needs to be taken before we’re having a different conversation.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A Dispatch poll in November 2016 showed 76.71% of respondents voted in favour of the lane becoming one-way, while 23.29% voted against.