Chicanes criticised as ‘ridiculous’ on Stockton street

People on Surbiton Road, Hartburn say the chicanes are “pointless” as they are too widely spaced to slow down motorists.

They have reported drivers racing through, getting into stand-offs or even road rage incidents and running into the chicanes after not seeing them for a low sun.

They say they have recorded videos of vehicles, including a supermarket delivery van, driving over the plastic bollards, with drivers seen picking up debris from their cars afterwards. Stockton Council says there is “strong evidence to support the safety measures being successful” with no recorded injury accidents in the last five years and average speeds reduced on the road.

Retired health and safety inspector Beverly Smith, 66, who lives next to the set of chicanes, said: “They’re too far apart so traffic doesn’t have to slow down at all. They’re not actually doing what they’re there for.

Resident Beverley Smith at one of the chicanes on Surbiton Road, Hartburn, Stockton. Picture: LDRS/suitable for all partners.

“If anything it speeds them up to try to get through. They’re not fit for purpose.

“The distance between them is ridiculous. They more or less just do a straight run through. If a bus doesn’t have to move or slow down, that says it all.

“One side’s supposed to give way, if they don’t they just sit sounding their horns constantly. I’ve even seen a couple get out and have fisticuffs.

“When the sun’s low, they drive over the top of them because they can’t see them. They wreck their cars, drive off and we end up having to pick the bits of their cars up, or we end up driving over the bits and damaging our vehicles.

“The council said they put them there because of accidents. I’ve been here 45 years and the only accidents are because of the chicanes. They’ve replaced the bollard once.”

They say the chicanes also cause problems with parking, deliveries, bin collections and road cleaning. Beverley said they had to dig up and pave part of their own garden to get a vehicle closer to home for her disabled father.

She added: “They block our entrances and drives, you can’t get up the drive without swerving around them by which time somebody’s up your back end. You can’t park on the front because you would block other people.”

She said she would like to see different traffic calming measures, like speed bumps as there are on other parts of the same road: “I was a health and safety inspector so I’m all for safety, but that isn’t safe for anybody.

“We’re not averse to traffic safety and slowing it down, but those chicanes aren’t doing it. They need to put speed bumps in.”

Her husband, retired HGV technician and coach driver Kevin, 72, said: “I’m very surprised nobody’s gone on to my drive and hit my car. They’ve gone straight over the bollard.

“You can straight-line it through the chicanes. There’s been more confrontations and near-accidents since they put the chicanes in. It’s not a one-off, it happens regularly.

“They fail to give way and there’s a stand-off. There’s actually been cars going on the opposite pavement because the other guy won’t get out of the way.

“When the sun’s low and it’s a bit icy, we stand at our bedroom window and say, ‘What’s the bet somebody’s going to smack the bollard?’ Somebody could drive over that, lose control and hit someone.

“They miss our bins because of the chicanes, because the wagons can’t get close and have to go past. The road cleaners do the gutters and swerve around the chicane.”

Their neighbour Joanne Norman, 53, said: “There’s road rage. They beep their horns, they won’t move.

“It’s normally between November and February when the sun’s low, you can’t see the chicane itself. People drive straight over, then they get out and they just don’t know what’s happened.

“I was thinking, how are people driving into that? I’ve driven around and you couldn’t see it.”

Councillor Paul Rowling, Stockton Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for resources and transport, said: “We appreciate the concerns raised by residents regarding the chicanes, which were introduced in 2009 following a period of seven collisions recorded in the five years prior. However, there’s strong evidence to support the safety measures being successful and over the last five years, there have been no recorded injury accidents on Surbiton Road.

Councillor Paul Rowling from Stockton Council. Picture: LDR.

“Traffic surveys have also found the average speed of cars on the road to have reduced compared to before the introduction of the chicanes and speed cushions. We recognise some residents may find the chicanes inconvenient, but the safety of road users and pedestrians is absolutely paramount – and they remain an established and effective method of reducing vehicle speeds and improving road safety.

“Of course, we will continue to monitor the situation and listen to views of residents, but our evidence-based approach does not support the removal of the chicanes or speed cushions at this time.”