Warnings of 'dangerous' Trowbridge road before child hit by car

Residents on Broad Street have been expressing concern for months about the lack of a safe crossing or traffic lights which they claim leave both pedestrians and drivers at risk, and stranded on an “island”.

Fears over the safety of the road came to a head on Monday, December 1, when a 12-year-old was rushed to hospital after being run over in the car park at Broad Street Crescent.

Wiltshire council said they "understand the concern this has caused locally and want to reassure residents that keeping people safe on our roads is a top priority".

Following the incident, a spokesperson for Wiltshire Police said: “We responded to a road traffic collision in Broad Street Crescent carpark at about 4.20pm yesterday involving a car and a 12-year-old child.

“There were no reported serious injuries but the child was taken to hospital as a precaution. There were no arrests.”

A spokesperson for the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SWASFT) said: “We were called at 15:48hrs on Monday 01 December to a road traffic collision in Trowbridge. We sent one double-crewed land ambulance to the scene and conveyed one patient by land ambulance to Royal United Hospital Bath.”

The incident has shaken residents, who are now calling for change on the road.

Patrycja Malek, 29, who lives in the building with her partner and three young children, has said Broad Street is “really dangerous” and that she is one of a number of residents terrified by the thought of crossing the road.

She said: “It was around school time finishing. It was really raining and the kid was trying to cross the street. After, other neighbours came with blankets and pillows to support them.”

Patrycja said that residents were trying to keep the child still until the ambulance came. When the ambulance came, the child was crying and saying they were having trouble with their vision before they were taken to hospital.

She has also said that she is concerned for her own young children, and said that her building on Broad Street is home to elderly people, as well as people with disabilities and hidden disabilities.

“I would like to see them do something. Especially after this incident,” she said. “I wouldn’t wish it to anyone’s child”

Ms Malek continued: “There’s literally no crossing. Most people are elderly people or with disabilities. It’s like an island without any crossing. And there are younger drivers speeding on that road.

“It’s really dangerous. There’s no way to cross the street. For an elderly person, it will take a while, and there are always cars coming all the way round the building.

“Many children use this school to go to school, nurseries, and over the building, there’s a nursery for small kids. It’s busy and there’s no crossing.

“That is just ridiculous. Especially as a parent, you realise it could happen to anyone’s child. I think it’s time that the council should do something about that.

“There should be at least traffic lights. Every single day cars are crossing each other and beeping. Sometimes they’re going in a different direction.”

Cllr Martin Smith, Cabinet Member for Highways, said: “Our thoughts are with everyone affected by the recent collision on Broad Street in Trowbridge.

"We understand the concern this has caused locally and want to reassure residents that keeping people safe on our roads is a top priority. We are always happy to speak with anyone about any safety issues they’d like to raise.

"Residents can also submit highway improvement requests to their town council for consideration by the Local Highway and Footway Improvement Group (LHFIG).

“As with all collisions involving personal injury, the Police will carry out a full investigation into the circumstances, and it would be wrong to speculate on the causes before those findings are available.”