Leeds resident erects sign warning of 'stupid thin road' as neighbours complain of 'constant beeping and crashes'
Residents of a road in Leeds that is faced with “constant beeping and constant crashes” have taken matters into their own hands by erecting a sign that warns drivers of the “stupid thin road”.
Drivers turning on to St Anne’s Lane from Burley Road may have noticed the sign, which has been placed on a post at the bottom of the hill since the summer.
At peak times it can look like a Mexican standoff between cars deliberating whether or not to make the passage, which often sees cars take up space on the pavement to get past one another. Neighbours of the road offered mixed takes on how bad the results are, with one business owner saying that “you see a car crash twice a week” and others downplaying the drama.
The business owner said: “When you’re going down it’s scary. It gets jammed at rush hour. There’s constant beeping and constant crashes from the road. That’s not an exaggeration.”
One of the neighbours taking her dog out for a walk said that drivers on the road are “very impatient” as “when you pull into the drive people are trying to pull round you”. She added that drivers using it as a cut-through and unsuitable vehicles like lorries using it also add to the issues.
She said: “We have seen things like wing mirrors get clipped off. It’s a bit frustrating but not a huge problem.”
Asked if there had been an effort to alert the council to the issues and possibly widen the road, she said: “To be honest I wouldn’t want it widening. I just think it needs to be controlled more.”
Asked if she felt that the addition of the sign had changed driver’s attitudes, she said: “I would like to think it makes people a bit more mindful of the fact it’s a very narrow road. It’s difficult when we get deliveries but it is what it is. It’s not changed in the 10 years we’ve been here.”
Another neighbour downplayed the severity of the road entirely, saying: “It’s fine.”
The sign was brought to the Yorkshire Evening Post’s attention after a story about residents in Meanwood creating a birdbox designed as a speed camera to deal with their own traffic problems.