A POTENTIALLY dangerous cycle path has prompted one Stratton resident to question why children are being allowed to ride alongside a dual carriageway.

Richard Woods is concerned that when his eleven-year-old son starts at Deer Park next year he will be cycling less than 2 metres from traffic speeding the other direction.

Having spoken to councillors and the school Richard feels as though he has nowhere left to turn on the issue as he has been met with assurances that there have been no accidents so far and occasionally no response at all.

After speaking about the issue to several other parents who are planning to send their children to the school he learned that they generally agreed with him but did not feel strongly enough to champion the cause themselves.

Richard described the inaction as insane and shared his fears that no action will be taken until a child is hurt on the road.

He said: “I don’t think the likelihood of an accident is insignificant, but the consequences are unthinkable.

“There seems to be no interest in it and I think it’s lethal.”

Richard pointed out that almost £1million has been allocated to Gloucestershire County Council for cycling infrastructure improvements but this funding has been given to projects in Cheltenham and Gloucester.

He voiced his frustration at the council, saying: “Why are they letting all this money be spent on just Gloucester and Cheltenham? I just don’t know.”

Addressing the issue the Head Teacher of Cirencester Deer Park School Ms. Chiquita Henson explained that the school did have discussions with the highways agency when the cycle path was marked.

She said that the school plans to review its current travel plan and added: “To date we have not had any issue with this and no current parent has raised any concern.”

“However, we are concerned to ensure all of our pupils’ safety and would be open to a conversation with the council about how we might be able to work together to improve the route to and from school.”

A spokesman for Gloucestershire County Council responded by saying: “We are not aware of a safety issue along this route but we are always willing to listen to any resident who is concerned.”

Please send your views to eca@wiltsglosstandard.co.uk or comment below.