THERE have been renewed calls for a review of a ‘problem’ road junction in Kendal with residents fearing it is only ‘a matter of time’ before someone is seriously hurt.

Concerns were voiced about the crossroads between Greenside, Bankfield Road and High Tenterfell following a road traffic collision there that saw an ambulance called on Monday.

But Jon Robinson, who lives by the junction, says residents’ group the Fellside Forum has been expressing misgivings about the spot for a number of years.

“You see so many near misses,” he said. “Not ones that would be reported like people having to run across the road because visibility is so poor or minor bumps in cars that probably weren’t reported to police.”

Mr Robinson said one of the problems was cars on Greenside travelling at high speeds because ‘it is a relatively wide main road into town’.

He said cars tended to try to avoid stopping when exiting Bankfield Road because it was on a hill.

“I don’t think anyone approaches the junction intending to do the wrong thing but the junction-design encourages people to make bad decisions,” he said.

“Increased traffic volumes have made this worse over the years, particularly since changes to the town centre traffic system.”

Susan Heyes, chair of the Fellside Forum, who also lives close to the junction, said: “There hasn’t been a really serious accident, which is why, I would have thought, they won’t do anything.

“But I think it would only be a matter of time, especially if there’s increases in traffic.”

Indeed, both Mr Robinson and Mrs Heyes fear the problems will only get worse if plans for 19 new homes south of Underbarrow Road are approved and traffic increases.

They are calling for a review of the junction by the council and for action ultimately to be taken to improve safety for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.

Peter Thornton, county councillor for the Kendal Strickland and Fell division, said: “We are aware that there is more development planned in the whole area, which might end up with a greater frequency of traffic and, bearing that in mind, I have asked our officers if they will do a feasibility study into the possibility of a small roundabout in that area.

“The Covid situation has thrown a big spanner in everything but I would have thought we could have got some sort of response [from Highways] by the end of this calendar year.”

Cllr Thornton said he had allocated some of his locality budget to putting a speed indicator sign in further up Greenside, which would be similar to the one currently on Windermere Road. He said this was ‘definitely’ going to be installed.

He added any measures depended on ‘motorists driving carefully and safely’.

Cllr Alvin Finch, the mayor of Kendal, agreed it was a ‘difficult’ junction.

“It’s the vision - you can’t see properly because of the parking on both sides of the road,” he said.

“So that does make it difficult and there has been quite a few accidents there.

"I think people do speed down (Greenside). And I can understand it is difficult for people wanting to go straight across the road.”

Cllr Finch said one of his friends had an accident at the junction about 18 months ago.

He said his friend left High Tenterfell and was hit by a car travelling down Greenside.