Disabled resident ‘having sleepless nights’ over Bristol’s viable neighborhood plan

A disabled woman is “having sleepless nights” over plans for a liveable neighborhood in parts of east Bristol. The plans include blocking access along a main boulevard leading to her home, instead forcing residents to navigate a narrow side street that is “not viable” for large vehicles.

The East Bristol Liveable Neighborhood is expected to be launched as a trial later this year. The pilot will install new bollards, planters and bus gates to prevent drivers from using residential roads to cross the area covering Barton Hill, Redfield and St George.

While some locals support the process because of the safety benefits of fewer cars passing their homes, others are concerned that the restrictions will unfairly affect elderly and disabled people who live in the area, as well as others who they rely on leadership, such as parents. on the school route.

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Parts of the process could be changed if and when Bristol City Council makes the scheme permanent, to address any specific issues. A local councilor said the bollards could be moved to different locations if there were specific issues with disabled accessibility.

Melissa Topping lives on Victoria Avenue, one of the main roads in the area, and is disabled. She relies on a wheelchair-accessible vehicle to get around but is worried the new planters will force her to drive down a narrow side road, Byron Street, to get to her home.

She said: “No one is listening to me, no one is giving me any answers. I’m basically putting a pole halfway up Victoria Avenue with a lock at the bottom, so Victoria Avenue will no longer be a road for any traffic, let alone cross traffic.

“They say it can all go down Byron Street to get to this end of Victoria Avenue, which is really not a viable street for large vehicles. I have a large vehicle myself and I wouldn’t even try to drive it down Byron Street. It’s too narrow, it also has a funny camber and the visibility is not good.

“I usually go down Church Road to turn right into Avonvale Road, right into Victoria Avenue and go straight down, no problem. And that’s what all the big vehicles do, for the end of Victoria Blvd. There’s nobody trying to go down Byron Street, it’s not worth it.”

Mrs Topping also expressed concern that a fire engine would not be able to navigate Byron Street due to its narrow width and cars parked on either side. She also claimed that garbage men struggle to access the street, although a garbage truck could be seen collecting bins shortly after the interview.

She added: “I have spoken to the refusal people. They said those roads are an absolute nightmare, with Byron Street being the worst of all as it is the smallest. They often have to park at the end and the dustmen have to run and get the bins.

“I will be left in a situation where one day I will go out in my vehicle, come home and not be able to get home. Out of 10 houses I know at the end of my street, six houses are either elderly or disabled. That means only four of the houses can use active travel if they want, the rest of us can’t.

“The council is not considering this at all. I have not received any answers to my questions. Apparently the reason they do it is to stop rat runners. But in order for them to stop the rat runners, what they’re doing is preventing residents from being able to get where they need to go.”

Mrs Topping recently met Green councilor Barry Parsons and a council officer from the project team to discuss her concerns. But she said she had previously felt patronized by some of the council’s responses to her questions.

She added: “It’s upsetting. The anxiety I’ve had since learning about this has gone through the roof. I have had many sleepless nights and many people I know here have too. Everyone is very worried.

“They seem to think I’m confused. They want to come and ease my confusion. I’m not confused, I’m worried. They were very patrons. It’s not like there’s a heavy flow of traffic out there that they have to stop.

“I would like to see it scrapped completely, or at least for them to stop, hold a proper consultation, meet with residents and actually find out what we want in the area and where traffic calming is needed.”

According to Cllr Parsons, who represents Easton, driving on Byron Street is “certainly possible with a large vehicle”, although he admitted the narrow side street is “tight and inconvenient”. He added that the livable neighborhood scheme could even make the area more accessible for people with disabilities.

He said: “Melissa contacted me a few weeks ago with her concerns. In particular, her problems were related to access as a person with a disability. It’s something I really wanted to make sure I covered. I arranged to meet Melissa in person with a member of the project team so she could share her issues and we could talk about some possible steps and a way forward.

“It is important that this scheme is as accessible as possible. We should design these schemes with accessibility in mind, right from the start. They have great potential to make our streets more accessible for people with disabilities, not less.

“We all agree that Byron Street is narrow, no doubt about it. But it is certainly possible to access Byron Street in a large vehicle. It’s tight and it can be uncomfortable, but it’s definitely possible.”

The East Bristol Liveable Neighborhood Plan is the first of its kind in Bristol. Another is in the early planning stages for parts of Bedminster, Ashton Gate and Totterdown, which could also be replicated in other parts of the city.

Similar schemes have been launched elsewhere in the country, sometimes called ‘low-traffic neighbourhoods’, such as in Bath. The aim is to make walking, cycling or cycling more attractive than driving to help reduce congestion, pollution and road accidents.

Cllr Parsons added: “With all its elements, such as the modal filters, they are mobile. When the process starts, we can take a look at how the different traffic cells actually work. We may need to move some of these. None of these things are set in stone.

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“The idea of ​​the trial is that we can test these things and see how they work in practice. It is possible to move that traffic filter elsewhere and provide an alternative access point for Melissa. I asked the project team to go and look at it.

“It should make traveling by car a little less convenient compared to traveling by foot, wheelchair, bicycle or mobility scooter. Encourage people to use alternatives to the car. And there are a lot of things that hamper the way our streets are currently designed.

“There are pavements with no curbs left, and pavements with damaged surfaces can really make it difficult for people with disabilities. There are vehicles parked on the sidewalks, dumpsters and dump trucks blocking the sidewalk. Melissa will help us identify big priorities for opportunities and improvements so we can make streets more accessible.”

Once the process is finally launched, local residents can help monitor its impact and provide feedback to the council. Cllr Parsons said he and other local councilors in the area were keen to hear any other concerns about the scheme.

He said: “There will be citizen monitoring of this scheme, which will mean that members of the public will be able to get involved in overseeing how it actually works in practice. We think there will be opportunities for people to get involved in things like traffic counters and hosting air quality monitoring equipment.

“I think well-designed schemes like this are absolutely good for the wider community and good for disabled people. This is a trial pilot scheme and part of what is being piloted is how the council can respond to residents and how people can get involved and shape how it develops.

“As local ward councillors, we agree with this scheme and think it is a good thing overall. But we’re very keen to hear from people who have concerns or something they think hasn’t been considered or deserves to be looked at again. It should be a conversation in the community.”