Sunderland Council apologises as residents angered over pedestrian crossing broken for several months
Concerns have been raised about the safety of visually and hearing impaired people using the crossing
Sunderland City Council has apologised for the inconvenience caused due to the traffic lights and pedestrian crossing on Chester Road opposite the University of Sunderland being out of action for “several months”.
The apology comes after a number of readers contacted the Echo annoyed with the ongoing situation and the length of time it is taking to repair the lights at the public crossing.
One reader was angered after claiming they were also informed by Sunderland City Council that the lights came under the jurisdiction of Newcastle City Council and as such they need to contact them.
There are currently temporary lights operating at the crossing point on Chester Road, but one reader who contacted the Echo claims “they frequently do not work”.
Responding to the situation a Sunderland City Council spokesperson said: “Sunderland City Council is responsible for all traffic lights within the city.
“There is a regional Traffic Signals Service that has been in place for a number of decades that design, install and maintain traffic signals across Tyne and Wear, Northumberland and Durham. The service operates out of Newcastle City Council on behalf of the regional authorities.
“For this crossing on Chester Road there is an electrical fault that has taken several months to resolve and we apologise for any inconvenience this has caused to residents. We are now giving this matter priority.”
One of the readers who contacted the Echo was particularly annoyed by the situation as a family member who works at the university is visually and hearing impaired and they feel is having his safety compromised due to the ongoing situation.
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Permanent pedestrian crossings have a ‘cone’ facility located under the control pad on the crossing which will physically rotate when the green pedestrian signal appears, letting blind and visually impaired people know it’s safe to cross.
The family member who contacted the Echo said this feature is not in place on the temporary signals.
A City Council spokesperson said: “The temporary signals that are in place are being inspected today (Monday 10 August) to help ensure they are suitable for those persons with both hearing and visual impairments.
“We are also reviewing our internal processes for reporting faults as this responsibility rests with the council and we are happy to report this matter direct to our Traffic Signals Service on behalf of residents.”