Safety plan for riverside crash site

A series of road safety measures will be introduced on a riverside road in Shrewsbury where two teenage boys died when a car was driven into the water.

Shropshire County Council had drawn up proposals to close Sydney Avenue, which runs along the River Severn, with lockable barriers following the fatal crash.

Michael Pritchard, 13, and his friend Alex Wills, 12, drowned when the car they were in plunged into the river in November 2001.

Michael's 32-year-old brother, Peter, who was driving the car, was jailed for five years after admitting two charges of causing death by dangerous driving.

Not feasible

But councillors received a number of objections to the plan and have decided that closure would not be feasible as the road provides riverside access for leisure purposes, such as fishing and canoeing.

Local residents were also concerned that a closure would bring more traffic through other roads in the Castlefields area.

The revised proposals include short lengths of crash barrier at each end of the road, where the accident risk is greatest and improved warning signs and road markings to encourage lower speeds.

Timber bollards will also be erected at a number of locations along the riverside.

Local councillor Derek Woodvine said: "This has not been an easy conclusion to reach, as we have had to balance the conflicting demands of the need to improve the safety of the road while trying to preserve the amenity."

Since 1979 there have been four crashes on Sydney Avenue in which people have been injured and two of them were fatal.

All the incidents happened at night and three involved a vehicle losing control at the bend where Sydney Avenue meets New Park Road.