New traffic restrictions set for busy Blackpool road to keep schoolchildren safe

Double yellow and double red lines are due to be painted on Lytham Road in South Shore, while a zebra crossing - on top of a speed hump - are due to be put in place in Arnold Avenue to protect youngsters at the new Armfield Academy.

Council documents said the measures would "improve road safety for pedestrians, especially pupils attending Armfield Academy", which opened on the site of the former Arnold school.

Teachers at the all-through school, which caters for both primary and secondary pupils, called for the restrictions after voicing "concerns for the safety" of youngsters crossing Arnold Avenue between the junior and senior school buildings.

Talks were held with the council, which agreed to paint double yellow lines, which mean no waiting at any time, on the east side of Lytham Road, while double red lines, which mean no stopping at any time, will be painted on both sides of Arnold Avenue.

An existing 'pinch point - where the road narrows briefly from two lanes to one - would be removed.

A routine consultation is now due to be held, with the plans on show for six weeks, before the work is done - as long as no objections are received.

Headteacher Mark Kilmurray had expected work on the zebra crossing and speed hump to begin in "early January", though the council's director of community and environmental services, John Blackledge, only authorised the consultation - and public notices linked to the work - last week.

The Armfield Academy, named after the late resort footballer and broadcaster Jimmy Armfield, who went to Arnold, opened to its first cohort of pupils in September 2018.

After opening in stages, it will eventually have the capacity to teach 1,280 children aged two to 16.

It is run by the Fylde Coast Academy Trust (FCAT), which runs a number of other schools in the area, including Unity Academy in North Shore, Montgomery in Bispham, and Aspire Academy in Blackpool.