Road safety measures outside Rainbow Corner nursery in Southsea to be ramped up in effort to stop crashes

Bollards and new signs were put up a year ago on Victoria Road North near Rainbow Corner nursery and it was also resurfaced following a series of crashes, two of which 'destroyed' the nursery's boundary wall.

Despite this, late night crashes have continued and Portsmouth City Council cabinet member for transport Lynne Stagg is now considering raising the zebra crossing and installing speed cushions to tackle the issue.

'It is a dangerous stretch of road because of its layout but there's not much we would be able to do about that, other than demolishing the buildings and straightening it, which is obviously not an option,' she said. 'What we can do is mitigate against these issues.

'By introducing these things you can force drivers to slow down which reduces the likelihood of them happening.'

She said both of the most recent crashes has been stopped by the bollards, causing limited damage to the nursery wall, but that further improvements were still needed.

A range of measures are being considered with rumble strips also being investigated in a bid to slow drivers down and make the bend in the road more visible.

Final details have yet to be agreed but Cllr Stagg will be asked to approve the work to assess the area in more detail at her decision-making meeting on Thursday (September 22).

Nursery owner Lucy Whitehead has welcomed efforts to tackle the problem, describing last year's measures as providing an 'extra level of reassurance about the safety of our children'.

SEE ALSO: What is a catafalque and its link to Queen’s funeral

A council report says the stretch of road is 'a priority' for improvements because of the large number of nursery children and pedestrians in the area.

Should Cllr Stagg approve further works, a detailed report of proposed measures would be drawn up in the coming months as well as financial estimates of the project cost.

Nursery owner Lucy Whitehead made a safety plea after the latest crash on December 31, 2021.

A signed petition garnered over 600 signatures, and was part of the campaign for improved safety measures.