Parents have been told they must wait two months before councillors will consider safety measures for their children's journey to school.

Heavy traffic and illegal parking on the pavement in the Maltings Lane development, Witham, have been causing problems for residents and parents taking their children to school for months.

But Essex county councillors insist the opening of a new access road in early 2003 is likely to relieve the congestion and they will not take any decisions on the situation until February.

Childminder Denise Simpkin, of Wickham Bishops, said: "I take several children along the road in the morning. All the parents have to park several roads away because there is not enough room close to the school.

"Sometimes I have a double buggy and two other children of five or six and we have had to walk into the road because of vehicles belonging to the workmen parked half-way up the pavement."

Holy Family, in Maltings Lane, is the only Catholic school for several miles, serving people from Hatfield Peverel, Witham and Wickham Bishops.

There are two buses serving the school but children not on bus routes have to be driven to school because of the distance.

A spokesman for the county council said: "This area is part of the Safer Journeys to School initiative. During a meeting last week, councillors discussed possible safety measures.

"They decided not to do anything until February, after the new link road to the Maltings development has opened."

Published Tuesday, December 17, 2002

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