LETTER: Accident waiting to happen at Garngaber Avenue, Lenzie

Sir, – Over recent years, the number of parked cars in Garngaber Avenue near to the traffic lights in Lenzie has been steadily increasing. In the past I found that parked vehicles along this street, in the vicinity of Lenzie Old Parish Church, did not generally impede the two streams of moving traffic.

However, the number of cars which are being parked along that street has increased to such an extent over the last year or two that, sometimes, it is very difficult to pass them and traffic coming the other way safely.

On two occasions about a year ago, I was driving along Garngaber Avenue near to Lenzie Old Parish Church within the speed limit when I came face-to-face with a bus. Unfortunately, the point where I came across the bus, right beside a long line of parked cars, meant that it was extremely difficult for me to pass the bus and the parked cars safely, even after slowing right down to a crawl. More recently, I have passed moving traffic in the same area which has made little or no effort to slow down while passing the long line of parked traffic. This, to me, is a recipe for accidents, and potentially serious ones. The council needs to do something about this, and soon.

As far as I am concerned, the section of Garngaber Avenue near to the church is not suitable for parking as (a) it is on a bend, and (b) the road there is not wide enough to accommodate both a long line of parked vehicles and two streams of moving traffic. I believe that one of two things should be done. Either limit parking to the layby beside LOPC which drivers have used for many years, or limit the speed limit in the vicinity of the church to 20mph. I really am fearful of there being an accident at some future time unless something is done, and it could be very much worse than merely damage being sustained to a car. – Yours, etc.,

David M Porter

Lenzie