BRADFORD on Avon could see big changes to its roads after councillors agreed to bid for new crossings in the town.

At Tuesday night’s virtual full town council meeting, councillors agreed to submit proposals for a new crossing on the town bridge and pedestrian refuge bollards in three areas of the town – measures which could eventually lead to the town becoming a blanket 20mph zone.

At a meeting with a Wiltshire highways office in late October, Cllrs Sarah Gibson, Laurie Brown and Mike Roberts ‘convinced’ the officer than the crossing currently provided by Wiltshire Council was ‘useless’.

Cllr Gibson said: “He had previously, on my request, been out to evaluate it at various times of the time and agreed that there was no point trying to improve it anyway whatsoever.

“It genuinely wasn’t working. There’s too much distraction at that point for anyone to take notice of a crossing that is not absolutely obligatory.”

At this point, the officer said the town council could put in a bid for a new formal crossing on the north side of the town bridge. A crossing which would go-ahead regardless of whether the social distancing scheme remains in place or not.

Previously in public participation, residents Trevor Bedeman and Jes Wire both welcomed the prospect of the formal crossing, as Mr Bedeman said that what is currently in place had been ‘unsatisfactory’ for social distancing since April.

Asked whether the councillors would be happy for the town clerk to write to the cabinet member for highways, Cllr Bridget Wayman to start the process of providing a formal crossing.

A vote in favour of requesting the crossing was unanimously passed by the town councillors.

Cllr Gibson said it was hoped the council would then find some way to ensure that the cost did not come from Bradford on Avon’s pocket.

The second proposal concerned the increase in traffic in the Springfield, New Road and Mount Pleasant areas.

Cllr Gibson’s recommendation would be to bid for a series of bolted bollards to make crossing easier, and by their positioning slow and reduce traffic.

The areas of Highfield Road, New Road Courts and the Springfield flats were measured by Cllr Mike Roberts, who sought to ensure they met the road width met requirements for the bollards.

He said that if these measures were in place, it would allow the town council to apply for a blanket speed limit reduction to 20mph throughout the town.

“If we have some of these controls in place, then I think we should go for the extra 20mph speed limit,” he said.

Leader of the town council Cllr Dom Newton broadly welcomed the plans and the need to protect those areas but said that speed reductions talks had happened before and there will be resistance.

The proposals were passed unanimously and a bid will be sent to Wiltshire Council.