Residents from the village of Bainton, which is north of Peterborough, met with local MP Shailesh Vara to seek his support to persuade Cambridgeshire Police and Peterborough City Council to take urgent action to stop speeding motorists and have a neglected footpath repaired.

Mr Vara, accompanied by Cllr David Over, visited the site and saw first hand the state of the pavement and also witnessed speeding cars going through the village.

The pavement, along the B1443 from Bainton to Barnack, is a danger to adults and children alike as it is narrow and in need of repair. The problem has been compounded over the years due to development in the area, leading to a substantial increase in traffic. Despite local volunteers monitoring traffic flow and providing compelling evidence to the Police and the Council, no action has been taken.

Bainton resident Mr Andrew Totten, along with other local residents, explained to Mr Vara their frustration at the lack of action.

Mr Vara has pledged to work with Cllr Over and the local community to persuade the authorities to make the road and pavement safe.

He has written to Cambridgeshire Police’s Chief Constable, Mr Nick Dean, as well as Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald, Leader of Peterborough City Council, urging them to constructively engage with local residents and work towards a solution.

Following the meeting Mr Vara said: 

“It is unacceptable that nothing has been done for so many years to sort out this problem. Traffic flow is increasing, more vehicles are speeding and the condition of this narrow pavement continues to deteriorate. Yet the response from the authorities is to let the problem get worse.

“I have written to Chief Constable Nick Dean and Cllr Wayne Fitzgerald, Leader of the Council, and asked them to look into the matter so that a positive solution can be reached.”

Mr Totten added:

“Residents of Bainton have been trying for a number of years to convince the authorities to take action to reduce the dangers from speeding traffic in the village.

“Proposals of a variety of traffic calming measures have been tabled with Peterborough City Council but not acted upon. Data collected by resident volunteers shows that 50% of all vehicles passing through the village exceed the 30mph speed limit, some at speeds up to 60mph. As a result pedestrians feel unsafe when walking along the narrow and restricted footpath between the villages to reach the primary school, the shop or the pub. Data collected from recently installed speed cameras which highlights speeding vehicles and whether they have valid tax and MOT is currently supplied to the police authorities who we hope will cooperate with the volunteers to find a way to use this data to convince motorists to obey the law when travelling through the village.”

Photo: Irene Walsh, Cllr David Over, Shailesh Vara MP, Cliff Stanton, Rob Mcmeish and Andrew Totten.