Council looks into crossing point for village after serious incidents

Oldham Council is assessing the need for a crossing point for a major route through a Saddleworth village, amid increased calls from two parish councillors. 

Demands for improved road safety measures on Huddersfield Road from local residents have grown in the past month following several serious incidents, including one man being killed and another sustaining life-changing injuries. 

A man in his 60s died after sustaining serious injuries in a collision with a silver Ford Transit van, while a 20-year-old motorcyclist suffered a serious injury and a cyclist, a man in his 50s, was hospitalised with life-threatening injuries in a separate collision. 

On the back of this, Saddleworth parish councillors Luke Lancaster and Max Woodvine got in touch with the council to request that measures are "finally considered with urgency". 

There's currently no crossing point for almost a mile so Cllr Lancaster has asked for a recognised crossing point to be implemented on the stretch of Huddersfield Road which passes through Austerlands. 

The council's Highways team has since agreed to conduct a pedestrian/conflict survey, which looks at movements of vehicles and pedestrians, around the road's bus stops to assess the need for a crossing point in the village. 

Cllr Lancaster commented: "This is a busy road and it can feel impossible to cross. For comparison, Oldham Road from Lees to Grotton is served by four crossings; I see no reason why this major route through Austerlands shouldn’t have similar provision. Hopefully the survey will confirm the need for this provision to be made, especially for the safety of our children who get the bus to school." 

In raising the issue of speeding, particularly on the bend into Austerlands and on the Dunham Street / Stamford Road junction in Lees, Cllr Woodvine has asked for action to be taken to address this problem through signage and road markings to encourage motorists to slow down.

He said: "I have lived on both Huddersfield and Oldham Road so I’ve experienced these problems first hand; my car was written off by dangerous and drunken drivers. It is the same old story of stupidity and silly speeds so we need to find a solution for the sake of Saddleworth & Lees." 

Main image:

Parish councillors Luke Lancaster (left) and Max Woodvine.