Colchester mum challenges Via Urbis Romanae speed limit

Salima Khan’s 12-year-old son was hit by a car while crossing Via Urbis Romanae in Colchester earlier this year.

Her son, a pupil at the Gilberd School, was on his way to the Trinity School where Year 7 pupils are being taught because of the crumbling concrete crisis affecting the Gilberd.

The mum-of-two was already concerned about the busy road’s junction with Whitmore Drive, which she navigates regularly while walking her nine-year-old daughter to Camulos Academy.

Junction - Whitmore Drive in Mile End, Colchester (Image: Elliot Deady, Newsquest)

Now, she is pressing Essex Highways to slash the speed limit on approach to the junction from 40mph to 20mph, add new signage, and make improvements to the traffic lights to give pedestrians more time to cross the road.

'No chance he would've survived'

The 42-year-old said: “When my son was hit, there was a bit of a traffic build-up because of traffic on the A12 so the traffic was going slowly, but if it was going at 40mph there’s no chance he would’ve survived.

“The incident has heightened my concerns about this junction. Road users need to know there’s children about so they’re more alert and schoolchildren need to not be under pressure to cross the road quickly.”

“At the junction, there’s nothing to say there’s a school there or that at certain times there might be children,” the Rosewood estate resident added. “It’s not right.”

David King, the leader of Colchester Council and the county councillor for the area, said Via Urbis Romanae is generally “a relatively safe road” but has asked highways bosses to act.

Safety first - Colchester Council leader David King (Image: Elliot Deady, Newsquest)

The Mile End councillor said: “I’m pretty supportive of anything we can do to make crossing a busy peak time junction safer. This is a delightful place to live but it’s intercepted by a major road.

“I have called on the county council to look at reducing the speed to 30mph, to add warning signage that we are by a school, and to review the pedestrian light phasing to give confidence and enough time for children to get across.”

Essex Highways confirmed it is looking into Mr King's request and urged road users to flag any concerns with the authority.

A spokesman added: “We were sorry to hear about this incident and wish the young man involved a speedy recovery.”