Shock results of accident report (From Barry And District News)

Shock results of accident report

PEOPLE living in Cadoxton are more likely to be injured on the roads near their homes than the majority of people in England and Wales.

The ward has the highest pedestrian injury rate in Barry for children and older people, and is also ranked among the top third of places in England and Wales in terms of road accidents.

According to data collected by the police, between 2000 and 2003, some 14 pedestrians aged under-16 or over-60 were injured in Cadoxton, at a cost to society of £921,060.

That figure is estimated to cover medical expenses, police time, repair of roads and compensation.

Cadoc councillor Fred Johnson was alarmed at the statistics but said it was something that he had thought for some time.

Just last month the Barry and District News reported on a woman who narrowly escaped death when a car driving down Coldbrook Road East crashed into a wall outside her front door.

And back in June, we highlighted the plight of a group of Cadoxton residents, who were campaigning for a safer road crossing on the same road after a five-year-old boy was nearly knocked down on a pedestrian refuge.

Cadoxton, however, is not the only ward in Barry with high pedestrian accident rates.

The Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT), which compiled the Cadoxton statistics, has also named Buttrills, Castleland and Gibbonsdown as accident hotspots.

Between 2000 and 2003, 12 pedestrians aged under-16 or over-60 were injured in Buttrills, 11 in Castleland and 10 in Gibbonsdown - at a collective cost to society of £2,171,070.

Senior road safety officer for the Vale of Glamorgan Council, Mike Dacey, said: "The council is aware of the relatively high accident rates in the Barry wards identified by CAPT, and has consulted with and has been working closely with the schools in these areas for a number of years.

"The Vale of Glamorgan has one of the lowest overall accident rates of the 22 local authorities in Wales.

"But even so, using grant funding from the Welsh Assembly Government, the council has in the last five years constructed more 20mph zones and introduced more pedestrian safety measures than any other authority in the Principality."

"Road safety engineering and education measures undertaken by the Vale are a robust response and are working," he added.

"They have resulted in a significant reduction in pedestrian accidents, particularly to the most vulnerable groups - children and the elderly.

"A good example is the construction of the pelican crossing at Cadoxton School; there has not been a single accident involving child pedestrians at this site."