Call for new safety measures at East Reading junction

Crescent Road in East Reading has three schools located in it and can be a helpful cut-through for drivers and cyclists to get to Wokingham Road, St Bartholomews Road and the A4 London Road.

But pulling out at its junction with Hamilton Road can be a nerve-racking experience due to the relatively high brick wall of a neighbouring home causing a blind spot.

That’s the feeling of a number of neighbours who have petitioned Reading Borough Council to look into ways to make the crossroads safer.

The council has received 23 reports of near misses and crashes at the junction, particularly involving cyclists and drivers.

READ MORE: Conversion of office into 24 flats on busy road in Reading approved

In one reported case, a cyclist was hit by a driver causing shock and bruising to one of their legs.

The neighbour said: “I was cycling down Hamilton Road and a car drove into the side of me as I crossed the junction with Crescent Road.

“The driver had been stationary but claimed he hadn’t seen me.”

The crash happened at around 8am on Thursday, October 13, 2022 and was reported to the council and the police.

It resulted in the bike being damaged and requiring replacement.

In another case, a driver claimed a cyclist went across the crossroads without looking for traffic.

The driver said: “She [the cyclist] certainly didn’t have time to react to that traffic which would have collided with her.

“I am very wary of this junction, definitely a serious accident waiting to happen.”

That incident occurred at around 3pm on December 8, 2022.

Neighbours have made a number of suggestions for how the junction can be made safer.

Suggestions include turning it into a mini roundabout, similar to the Crescent Road junction with Eastern Avenue and Erleigh Road, reconfiguring the road by adding bollards or adding a speed camera to enforce the 20mph limit.

One neighbour even submitted a sketch of how the junction could be reconfigured, which involves cutting into the pavement to provide a better line of sight for drivers and cyclists.

Request to improve road safety of junction between Crescent Road and Hamilton Road, Appendix 2 submitted to Reading Borough Council

A number of neighbours acknowledged difficulties with reconfiguring the junction due to a high brick wall and a protected cedar tree causing blind spots for drivers.

A list of 26 comments and ideas to improve road safety at the junction was submitted to the council on March 2.

In a report, Jim Chen, an assistant engineer for network services working for the council recommended that the petition and its suggestions be shared with John Ennis (Labour, Southcote), the lead councillor for transport and Park ward councillors for discussion.

The outcome of these discussions will then be reported in a council meeting.

Mr Chen added that there is currently no allocated funding for the development and delivery of physical changes to the junction, but acknowledged that there is a desire to reduce risks.

The petition and Mr Chen’s recommendation will be discussed at a meeting of the council’s traffic management sub-committee on Wednesday, June 14.