Our objections to street lighting reductions for the A1086 between Blackhall and Horden

The council began a round of consultation recently asking members of the public to comment on its proposals to remove street lighting along some of the roads in between our villages as part of its ongoing street lighting and energy reduction policy (please see posts dated Tuesday 18 October 2016, Wednesday 22 June 2016 & Wednesday 19 November 2014 for background details and links to our earlier objections).

We have been consistent in our absolute opposition to the removal of any street lighting in any part of our ward and we remain unequivocally opposed to the proposed removal of street lighting in the particular area now under consideration.

We have submitted our objections to the relevant department and we would encourage anyone sharing our concerns to do the same. 

We have published below our objections in full. Please feel free to use them as a guide if you wish to record your own objections:

Street Lighting and Energy Reduction proposals to remove street lighting in parts of Blackhall Colliery and High Hesleden (using RSR 130, RSR 230 & RSR 231A data)

Response of County Councillor Rob Crute & County Councillor Lynn Pounder (Blackhalls Division):

With regard to proposals as they relate to RSR 130 & RSR 230 (at High Hesleden) we note that our objections to street lighting removals in these locations were submitted in 2013/14. In addition, we note that the data used in these reviews are 3 years out of date and no longer fully relevant.

Our objections to the removal of street lighting in these locations remain.

With regard to proposals as they relate to RSR 231A (A1068, Coast Road between Blackhall Colliery & Horden), we note that these proposals ought to refer to the A1086 (rather than the A1068 as stated in the council's documentation).

In recording our objections to the removal of street lighting at this location we would make the following comments:  

• We accept that PIA data reflects the number of accidents over the past 5 years. However we would ask the council to consider the relatively high number of accidents on this road, some of them fatal, in the years leading up to the start of the PIA data period
•         The A1086 is a vital link between two communities with strong social links and, as such, is a very busy walking route for many residents of both villages, including children and young people. We have concerns that removing street lighting on this stretch of road will have a huge impact in terms of social isolation
•         Further, the A1086 at this location is a key part of the walk to school route for Blackhall children attending Dene School (on request, the school has confirmed that there are currently 78 such children). We are concerned that removal of street lighting on the A1086 at this location will pose a serious and unacceptable risk to the safety of young people walking to and from school
•         The road at this location leads to and from a number of residential estates. Residents are frequently dropped off and collected by private vehicles and taxis on the A1086. It is clear to us that the removal of street lighting on this road, particularly at these points, greatly increases the already high risk of serious collisions and accidents
•        The A1086 is a major public transport link between Hartlepool in the south and the towns and many villages to the north and west of Blackhall. It has a number of bus stops at this location and we believe that removing street lights here would significantly increase the risk of accidents
•         The highway at this particular location is shielded on both sides by a constant line of thick and high trees which blocks the natural light on to the road. Clearly removing street lighting at this location would make a bad situation even worse, particularly during the hours of darkness when even limited natural light will be blocked
•         The A1086 at this location passes directly through the Castle Eden Dene nature reserve at an elevated point. It is also very close to the coast. These factors combined, alongside vegetation shielding as referred to above, mean that the highway surface is especially prone to frost and ice. This area is also susceptible to fog and coastal mist all year round
•         Finally we would draw your attention to the propensity for significant and serious landslips in this area. The most recent one occurred fairly recently, in 2012/13, meaning that the entire stretch of road was partially closed for almost 2 years. Clearly the removal of street lighting at this location would have a significantly limiting impact on the ability to remedy any future landslips.

In submitting our objections we can confirm that we have listened to the concerns of our residents at many ward surgeries and other public consultation events. They share our worries about the seriously detrimental effect of street lighting removals in this area, particularly in terms of risk to the personal safety of pedestrians, motorists and other road users.

Residents also agree with us that street lighting and energy reduction proposals have a disproportionate and unfair impact on rural communities, as opposed to urban areas which remain unaffected by the programme.

We fully support the council’s recommendation to improve and replace the vehicle restraints and concrete fencing adjacent to the A1086 at this location.

Accordingly, we wish to record in the strongest terms our objections to the proposals for street lighting removal at these locations.

Cllr Rob Crute & Cllr Lynn Pounder, Blackhall Division, Durham County Council.