12:00pm Friday 1st May 1998
Two serious smashes in two days on a busy main road have sparked calls for safety measures. And an 11-year-old girl has launched a petition urging Wandsworth Council to take action before the blackspot claims another victim.
In the first crash a London General bus hit the boundary wall of the Upper Tooting Methodist Church in Balham High Road at around 5am last Wednesday.
Half the wall was destroyed but luckily there was no-one around at the time. The driver suffered only minor leg injuries. A spokesman for the London General Bus Company said he could not comment until an investigation into the incident was completed.
Just two days later a woman moped-rider suffered head, shoulder and leg injuries after she was in collision with a car just yards away at the junction of Streathbourne Road. The air ambulance was called but she was taken to St George's Hospital by road. There were early fears her injuries may be fatal but she is now described as "stable and comfortable".
The Rev Jenny Impey, minister of the Upper Tooting Methodist Church, says there have been three major smashes near the church in the past 18 months and countless more previously. Now she has written to the council demanding an investigation and a road safety review. She has been backed by Joan Sullivan, whose 11-year-old daughter Tracy plans to organise a petition to demand something be done.
"My daughter heard the crash and woke me up. When we looked out of the window the police had already arrived. There were bits of the motorbike all over the road. It's a disaster area. Drivers use it as a race track. Another pedestrian crossing or speed camera would be a good idea."
A Wandsworth Council spokesman said that measures were planned to ease the problem. "The A24 Balham High Road is scheduled to become a red route in about 18 months.
"When that happens a new central pedestrian island will be installed near the junction with Drakefield Road. The next step is for the introduction of speed cameras which should have a significant impact on reducing vehicle speeds in the area."
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