Hemel Hempstead dad calls for road crossing service outside school

A parent is calling for a road crossing service to be put in place outside a busy primary school in Hemel Hempstead after his daughter was injured in a collision earlier this week.

Mr Ahmed is backing the Hemel Hempstead MP's campaign for lowering the speed limit to 20mph but is calling on Hertfordshire County Council to take immediate action by making Bennetts End Road safe to cross with the introduction of traffic lights or a zebra crossing outside The Reddings Primary School.

On Monday morning (October 18) Mr Ahmed's daughter was injured in a collision, involving a grey Suzuki Vitara and a pedestrian, in Bennetts End Road. She is now recovering at home. Read more about the collision on Monday here.

In a separate incident, a teenage girl was involved in a collision with a vehicle on Bennetts End Road, a day later.

Police were called to report a road traffic collision on Bennetts End Road on Tuesday (October 19).

A spokesperson for Hertfordshire Police said: "It was reported that a vehicle and a pedestrian (a teenage girl) were in collision at around 8.10am.

"The vehicle initially stopped, but drove away without leaving details. No injuries were reported.

"Any witnesses to the incident are asked to call 101 quoting ISR of 155 of 19 October."

Mr Ahmed is calling for the council to make the roads safer to cross outside the school.

He said: "The MP's campaign is a good initiative, it is a good start, but something can be done straight away.

"My daughter is doing okay and we are grateful as it could have been worse.

"The parents have been saying for ages that the road is dangerous, it is a really busy road and there is no were safe to cross near the school.

"There has not been a lollipop lady since the end of summer last year.

"It has been an accident waiting to happen.

"There was an accident on the same road the next day, so that's two children involved in collisions in two days.

"Something needs to be done really quickly.

"Traffic lights, or a zebra crossing, or speed humps would all be beneficial.

"The school has been advertising for a lollipop lady but they have not got one yet.

"Most other schools have crossings and I think that is what is needed here, somewhere safe for people to cross.

"Also, there are a lot of cars parked outside the school, especially during school drop off and pick up time, maybe that is something that needs to be looked at as well.

"It is a busy road and that doesn't help during the school times.

"Something needs to be done now to make this safe for our children.

"The parents have been saying for a while that the road is dangerous, and an accident waiting to happen, and this should be a wake up call.

"I don't want a child to get seriously injured before the council does something."

A spokesperson for Hertfordshire County Council said: “We were very sorry to hear about the collision near the school and are glad to hear that the child involved is recovering.

“The safety of children going to and from school is a high priority for us.

"We are currently recruiting a new school crossing patrol for this location and we’re hoping to interview some candidates for the role shortly.

"We’re also engaging through the school’s School Travel Plan to deliver road safety education to pupils at the school.

“Once Herts Police have completed their investigations into the cause of the collision, we will be able to consider whether any further measures are needed.”