1. Approaching the build out obviously sweeps left, out of sight, requiring drivers to slow down because they are unable to see if it’s clear to drive around the build out.
In these two final shots, you can see the road beginning to open up more, as I arrive at the exact location of the give way line on the road. Clearly, if the driver is to proceed safely, they will need to be going slow enough at this point to make a decision as to whether or not to stop on the line.
Roger Gambba-Jones 
And there you have proven the point
Even when you are at the line, you do not have a clear view of the road ahead.
Even if the oncoming traffic is at or below the 30mph limit, by pulling out (because you can’t see them), you are immediately closer than their safe stopping distance. Add to this that you are now accelerating from an almost stop because you had to slow down almost to a halt in the first place, your ability complete your manoeuvre and get back onto your side of the road is limited.
Of course if we are talking about a larger vehicle (i’m thinking 38 ton truck or the Into Town bus) that is travelling a bit quicker than perhaps they should, then you have a situation where you are pulling out into the path of an oncoming vehicle and they are then forced to take evasive action.
All of these assume that all drivers are experienced, paying attention and are travelling well within the speed limit. It also assumes that all drivers are courteous. Remember that a number of drivers when they see traffic oncoming on their side of the road actually accelerate to “prove” their belief that they have a “right of way” (something I don’t believe exists under road traffic law)
As road design is supposed to account for less able and less experienced road users then in this case, the designer has failed.
Yes one answer is to trim back the trees on the left hand side to open up the view but to do nothing even though your photos above have proven without a doubt that the current design has a very dangerous blind spot is negligent.
I am absolutely for measures that curb the flow of speeding drivers along Wygate Park but at the expense of safety?
For the last 7 years, you have claimed that this build out is 100% OK. In this post today you prove without any doubt that this is not the case. Will you act now?
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I think what I’ve might have proven, is that the design of the build out is working as intended, even if there is potential for it to be seen as suffering from a blind spot by some drivers.
What I believe my frame captures actually prove, is that if you stop, or at least pause on the give way line, you will be able to see clearly enough to proceed. I accept your point regarding needing to design for the inexperienced driver, but there are plenty of examples of junctions and road conditions that are much more challenging, even for experienced drivers and in far more hazardous locations. An extreme local example of this would be the Burr Lane junction with Barrier Bank. Exiting a narrow lane, uphill, with limited side to side visibility, on to an often busy 60mph road, is definitely not for the novice, or the feint-hearted!
That said, I have come to accept that, even when you might be technically right, if the vast majority of people believe something different, you are probably fighting a loosing battle and it’s either time to shut up, or change your position. I’ll have to leave it to you to decide what I’ll be doing.
Finally, as a district councillor, I can only do the same as you, make a complaint to the county council, via the Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership (LRSP). If they accept that there is a potential issue, they will carry out a safety audit, in order to determine the validity, or otherwise, of the concerns raised. I did just that, in respect of the buildout at the other end of the road, based on concerns raised by some residents and my own concerns that the wooden fence on the right hand side of the road might be reducing visibility. The result of their investigation, was that there was not an issue and no changes were required.
It’s also worth noting, that they will always use traffic incident and injury data for the location, as a start point. As far as I’m aware, there have not been any incidents on this part of the road since the build out was installed. I’ve just received the same response regarding the pedestrian crossing, having asked the a highways officer to look at it, based on suggestions that some drivers are failing to stop and even overtaking vehicles that have stopped.
I will make enquiries with the LRSP, to see if they are willing to carry out an investigation of the road layout and the build out. Just for information, the LRSP carried out vehicle speed audits on Wygate Park and Park Road several months ago at my request. To my surprise and disappointment, they determined that average vehicle speeds were below the 30mph speed limit – I hate averages!
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