Parents pleased with traffic reduction scheme at primary school in Dagenham
Barking and Dagenham councillors Margaret Mullane and Evelyn Carpenter with headteacher Martin Nicholson and assistant headteacher Alice Carroll outside the Grafton Primary School gate. Picture: Nick Williams / Be First - Credit: Archant
Parents at a Dagenham primary trialling the council’s schools streets scheme say it’s started well.
The scheme, which aims to reduce traffic danger outside the gates at pick up and drop off times, was brought in at Grafton Primary and four other schools on November 2.
It restricts vehicles in peak times, effectively creating a pedestrian and cycle zone.
Claire Hunt, whose daughters attend Grafton Primary, said: “It used to be chaos - you couldn’t see anything but cars in front of the school gate. Now, it’s just a nice pleasant journey and it was easy for my girls to cross the road with their bikes without worrying that the cars are driving at them.”
Headteacher Martin Nicholson said: “It has massively reduced congestion at the gate so we can socially distance more effectively.”
Cllr Margaret Mullane said parents told her the school run was much calmer now while neighbours liked that it improved access to homes and eased parking issues.
