Perth Voice Interactive

MAYLANDS residents will likely lose their latest battle with Bayswater city council over plans to improve safety on Seventh Avenue.

The Seventh Avenue Street Alliance, which in March lost a bid to close the road to traffic, is now asking the council for a roundabout at the Coode Street intersection.

Alliance spokesperson Gail Cameron says the group is renewing its fight for the “best traffic calming option” after a recent report found the intersection to be one of the most dangerous in the area.

“It was information residents weren’t aware of when we first started,” says Ms Cameron.

The OPUS report, costing the council $72,000 and tabled in April, found the intersection to be “hazardous”, with eight on-site crashes— three fatal or requiring medical care — in the past five years.

Ms Cameron reckons a roundabout is the next-best option to slow traffic on the street, following the failed bid for a dead-end.

But mayor Sylvan Albert says raising pavements and installing traffic islands near the Coode Street stop signs should be enough, and that’s backed by the OPUS report authors.

“This is recommended to be…effective at reducing speed and addressing safety issues and at a much lower cost with less impact on residents,” Cr Albert says.

The council’s plan costs around $35,000 compared to $220,000 for a roundabout.

“Roundabout construction would require substantial earthworks with impacts (to) adjoining properties as well as the need to relocate power poles and underground power,” Cr Albert says.

He adds a roundabout will make it harder for walkers and cyclists to pass the intersection as vehicles aren’t required to stop.

The council will consider all options at its July 28 meeting.

by EMMIE DOWLING