A Beeston homeowner said he heard a 'great big bang' as a car crashed into his fence. The incident took place at the junction of Marlborough Road and Abbey Road in Beeston, on Wednesday 19 October.
The collision involved two cars in which one ended up crashing into a fence at the junction. At roughly 9pm homeowner Charles St-Dennis heard a big bang and went out of his back door to see his fence damaged.
Mr St-Dennis, who lives with his wife Angela, said: “It was a great big bang, this one was a big bang. I said to Angela that's the fence gone and I went out to the back door and just saw the carnage. I phoned the police and the emergency services.”
According to Mr St-Dennis this junction is a hotspot for accidents and has seen multiple incidents.
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He said: “I’m used to it now - not a lot of emotion at all, we've had it happen so many times and over the years you come accustomed to it, you become immune to it and just hope nobody Is injured.
“They’ve been in the wall opposite, the house opposite, the flats - all four corners. It’s careless driving and not knowing the junction properly. There’s been three this month, two finished in the middle of the road, just minor bumps."
Councillor Steve Carr, the deputy leader of Broxtowe Borough Council, who represents Beeston North for the Liberal Democrats, said previous measures to improve issues at the junction hadn't worked. And he said he was looking into ways safety could be improved.
Councillor Carr, who also represents Bramcote and Beeston North on Nottinghamshire County Council, said: "I was contacted by residents about the accident and contacted the County Council straight away. Whilst previous measures were taken to try an make this junction safe, they are clearly not working now. I have secured an on site meeting about this and I will be urging the council to take further action.”
At the scene of the incident, Mr St-Dennis said he tried to get the details and insurance details of the motorists but said it had been difficult due to a language barrier. He said he left it to the police at the scene to speak to the motorists. He since has been trying to get the details from the police so he can go through insurance companies to cover the repairs to his fence.
Mr St-Dennis added: "This junction literally takes life in your hands. When you come up to the crossroads you can't see. There’s a car pulling out and all of a sudden a car comes up Marlborough Road and bang. You see it that often I'm getting as long as nobody is hurt, I can replace my fence but you can replace limbs or can’t replace a person.”
He believes traffic calming measures could help prevent these incidents, adding: “A barrier, railings, so when it does happen cars don’t go into your property - all you need is them. For four halt signs where you have to stop and put up a camera on one of the houses. Or traffic lights, plus the barriers and then you have it recorded driving through at the four stop signs. “
Neighbours also expressed concerns. Resident Sheikh Faruque, 62, said he almost moved out of his home due to all the accidents. Mr Faruque said: “I heard a bang and I went out and saw there was a crash between two cars - there were a lot of people and just ran out to help. It’s happened here so many times since I moved here in 2003. I think we need traffic lights.
“We definitely need controlled traffic lights. There’s a lot of students, a lot of young people, there’s schools. At one point we were so scared we thought we would move away because we’d seen so many, it is frightening.”
Another resident, Jules Bellingham, shared concern and says something needs to be done. The 57-year-old said “’ve seen the debris. I think since I've lived here seven years, I think there’s been three or four. It’s a crossroad and cars aren’t stopping. They think it’s okay to plough across. It was quite a big accident. Something needs to be done.
“Clearer signage, I don’t know where traffic lights would do it, it is quite a busy road. Marlborough road is a cut through. If you're a pedestrian and crossing over on Abbey Road it can be quite dangerous. Something needs to be put in place.”
Gary Wood, Head of Highways and Transport at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “We’re aware of resident concerns regarding safety at the junction of Marlborough Road and Abbey Road in Beeston.
“We have previously made a number of improvements at the junction to overcome the issues. These include traffic calming, improved signs and road lining, high friction surfacing and improved crossing facilities for pedestrians.
“We will be checking the road lining at the site as a priority and will refresh these if required. We are also taking another look at the junction to consider if any other measures can be implemented to improve the situation.”
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