Residents of St Rumbold’s Fields in Buckingham face unnecessary risks in their journeys to the town centre. There is no street lighting from this new development on Tingewick Road for some 250 metres along the heavily wooded street until you reach Westfields. Concerns were raised at the Buckingham Town Council Planning Committee about visibility for pedestrians and cyclists travelling to work and school in the town from the new housing, and for parents and children travelling to the Day Nursery on Tingewick Road.
If the lack of lighting means that residents drive instead of walking or cycling, thousands of unnecessary car journeys will be made each month, leading to pollution and congestion in the town centre. The lack of cohesive lighting linking the town and this new estate was a missed opportunity to improve the walking network across Buckingham.
Mayor of Buckingham, Cllr. Margaret Gateley said that “It is extraordinary that there should be no street lighting on this busy stretch of road. This follows recent national safety concerns about women in particular walking during the hours of darkness. We should be doing everything we can, not only to encourage people to walk relatively short distances, rather than to use their cars, but also to keep them safe.
St. Rumbold’s Fields is a large housing development on the edge of the town. Many young families live there. Now that the clocks have gone back children and young people will be walking home from school in the dark along this unlit road. They will also need to cross the road with its 50mph speed limit in order to access St Rumbold’s Fields, as there is only a footpath on the opposite side of the road. We need not only to press for street lighting here, but also for a reduction in the speed limit to 30mph. These two measures would make walking to school or into the town a much safer and more attractive option for all and would also reduce the carbon footprint.”
