Twitchen road narrowing caused by overgrowing hedge

Road narrowing due to hedge overgrowing the highway on the B4385 north of Twitchen – a message from Councillor Morgan

In recent months I have been asked by local residents if there is anything that can be done about the large hedgerow, which is causing an obstruction to traffic along the B4385 north of Twitchen. If you are driving towards Purslow from Twitchen the offending hedge is on the left-hand side just after the top lane right turn for Clunbury. The hedge runs along the highway boundary adjacent to the property known as Glenside and is opposite the property called Sunnyside.

Anybody that uses the road from Purslow to Twitchen will know the section of highway well, as it is almost impossible for vehicles to pass each other and certainly not possible if one of those vehicles is a larger van, lorry or bus. In fact, it is a regular occurrence that larger vehicles must stop and reverse back up the road to allow another to pass through. For many road users they face the risk of scratches down the side of their vehicle from the hedge or losing their wing mirror to the oncoming vehicles. Aside from problems for motorists, it is an extremely dangerous spot to be caught out if you are on a bike or trying to walk along the road. There is simply nowhere to escape the oncoming traffic.

Photos below:

Given the above issue I proceeded to submit a FixMyStreet application to Shropshire Council Highways along with photographic evidence, regarding the problem. Discussion was also held with Sam Walmsley our unitary councillor at one of our Parish Council meetings, where he agreed to follow the matter up.

Unfortunately, the response I have received from the Council and Sam Walmsley is far from satisfactory. In Sam’s words “Shropshire Council won’t be taking any action to get it cut back, the key reason being that widening the road is likely to increase vehicle speeds rather than reduce them”. So basically, the Council are using a hedge overgrowing the highway as a speed calming measure, regardless of other implications as outlined above.

To top it all off there is a row of highway bollards with reflectors buried along the centre of the hedgerow, which were presumably originally installed to demark the edge of the highway, especially during the night. I am told by one of the Parish Councillors that a previous owner of the house adjacent used to mow the grass verge between the bollards, which means it would have provided a safe haven for people walking along the road if they needed to tuck in away from passing traffic.

Personally, I feel this situation is ridiculous and that there is far more danger due to the hedge narrowing the road than there might be from speeding traffic. If anyone would like to make further representation regarding this matter please contact the Parish Council direct on email ‘clerk.clunburyparishcouncil.gov.uk’ or your local Councillor.

Thanks

Nick Morgan

Councillor