A new pinch point on a suburban road has been described as “an accident waiting to happen”, with neighbours speculating it has been designed back-to-front.
Two new sets of pinch points have been installed on Drayton Wood Road in Hellesdon, in a bit to calm the traffic which uses it as a cut-through between Reepham Road and Drayton High Road.
Both sets consist of islands and bollards and replace original smaller bollards which each fell victim to collisions in recent months.
However, one of the two has been installed with the first set of bollards on the right side of the road, rather than the left, which neighbours say is causing confusing among drivers.
Paul Bell, a school chef who lives on the road, says: “To me they look like they have been put in backwards. The way they are set up cars just get stuck in the middle with neither giving way - and it leaves people on the wrong side of the road.
“They are supposed to slow traffic down but I think people have actually been speeding up to get through them., It’s an accident waiting to happen.”
However, a spokesman for Norfolk County Council said the lay out was not out of the ordinary.
Mr Bell, 64, added: “Lots of the neighbours I have spoken to feel the same way. I just think they need to be changed around to be like the set further down the road.
“My worry is that eventually somebody won’t get back onto their side of the road quick enough and will hit somebody coming out of St Andrew’s Road, which is between the two pinch points.”
Mr Bell speculated that a mistake may have been made during the installation, but a spokesman for County Hall said they understood this was not the case and the points were put in place as designed.
They said: “Pinch points such as this are often used on residential routes and following local feedback these were put in place to help reduce speeds and make this route less attractive for non-local traffic.
“The layout means that no one direction has right of way at both sets, so this helps ensure drivers slow down at the pinch points.”
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