A councillor has demanded urgent action at a north-east school to address concerns children’s safety is being jeopardised.
Congestion at peak pick-up and collection times at Macduff Primary School has been exacerbated recently after Gamrie’s surgery began transferring patients to the medical practice off Duff Street.
Local councillor, Hamish Partridge, has now claimed the added traffic is putting children at risk as they make their way to and from school.
In a letter sent to the local authority’s roads department, Mr Partridge branded the situation as an “accident waiting to happen”.
He added: “Some measures have been put in place in the form of yellow lines at junctions, but that is far from enough.
“This doesn’t even start to tackle the problem or reduce the chance of someone getting killed or injured as a result.
“I, along with other councillors and the public, have made Aberdeenshire Council aware of this on a number of occasions and I wonder who is liable if something happens?
“What is our duty towards kids’ safety attending school? Does it take someone to get hurt before a serious look is taken at this issue and measures that make a difference are introduced?”
Mr Partridge wants the local authority to meet parents to discuss options for improving road safety near the school “before it’s too late”.
Macduff has experienced major expansion during the last year. In addition to hundreds of new patients from Gamrie, who have to travel to the port for medical advice, a £3.5million sports centre opened near the school before Christmas which brings additional vehicles to the area.
Derek Murray, Aberdeenshire Council’s roads manager, said the authority had already implemented road safety measures near the school, including waiting restrictions.
He added: “Further traffic speed surveys have been carried out in recent weeks and the results are being collated.
“All road users and parents should be aware of the dangers around our schools and observe the warning signing and restrictions in place.
“In the vicinity of Macduff Primary, Duff Street is covered by a mandatory 20mph speed limit during peak school times and Berrymuir Road has a permanent 20mph limit in place.”
