Frightened Ainsworth residents say it is only a “matter of time until someone is killed” after four car accidents in the space of four weeks.
Residents on Church Street are constantly worried after the latest series of crashes wrote off several parked cars and destroyed a bus stop in the early hours last week.
One resident, who didn’t want to be named, said they have had two of their cars stolen and two cars written off in their time living on the street.
Their most recent car, which had just had its MOT completed at £600, was written off in last week’s collision after it was crashed into while it was parked up.
Read more: Man rescued after car crashes into 5 parked cars in Ainsworth
The resident said: “I lie in bed at night and listen to people racing down the road and it is only a matter of time until someone gets killed.
“As an adult, I'm worried about the children.
“I drum it into mine that they need to be careful, but you don’t expect a car to come speeding at you on the wrong side of the road.”
Owner of Casalingo restaurant and Ainsworth resident, Jo Lancaster, said she often has people asking her to check the business CCTV after jet another incident on the road.
One video, captured on the restaurant’s cameras in 2021, shows a woman starting to cross the road before a tractor, that was being driven on the wrong side of the road, almost hits her.
Jo said that “people are frightened to death” from the speeding and “near misses”.
She also had her car written off in 2019 after it was hit, while parked, by a fast-moving car that then flipped into the middle of the road.
Read more: Shocking CCTV shows car flipped onto its roof after crash
The incident was captured on CCTV.
Jo added that on more than one occasion, she has had to pick up car bumpers and sweep debris out the road herself.
While speaking to residents about the ongoing issues, within 20 minutes of standing on Church Street, we witnessed a speeding car almost crashing into a tractor.
After slamming on the brakes, the driver of a black Audi then drove onto the opposite side of the road, on a blind corner, just before the top of a hill.
The driver, who wouldn’t see the oncoming car from their position, avoided hitting the vehicle and tractor by inches.
Paul Buckley, a resident and member of Ainsworth Community Association, said the near miss just highlighted their point of how dangerous drivers can be.
He said: “A car smashed through my garden gate a few years ago, just missing the gas box on the front of our house.
“We heard the noise and came downstairs to find the tires on the car still spinning but the driver had run off.
“It is dangerous. We had workmen here to install traffic calming measures and even they said that working on this road was unsafe.”
One of the problems with the road that Paul has spotted includes an island located around 3.5/4m from a tight junction.
He said: “It isn’t safe, you can see the new traffic calming island that has just been installed is already covered in scratches from where people have hit it.
“Instead of slowing down to go around them carefully, people go onto the opposite side of the road and that is when we get even more accidents.”
As part of a new neighbourhood policing model, the road has been highlighted as a speeding hotspot and is being regularly patrolled by officers.
Read more: Five Bury 5 speeding hotspots targeted by police
Jane Lees, the chair of Ainsworth Community Association, said that while this was helpful, they need a more permanent solution.
She said: “We need to make the village so slow that it is completely undesirable to people who want to use it as a race track from Bury to Bolton.
“When I had my car damaged, I didn’t report it to the police because it wasn’t a major hit and the driver didn’t stop so I claimed on my insurance.
“A few people have done this and it means that figures don't represent how many accidents and issues we have actually had on this road.”
Jane is urging residents who have had similar incidents to send their photos, videos and cases to the group and police when they happen.
Residents say they would also like a speeding camera but have been told by the council that it would be too expensive to install.
A resident opposed this decision and said: “At the last accident, we had the fire services, ambulance services and the police attend.
“A bus stop was destroyed, there was debris in the road, and cars were totalled.
“Surely this accident alone has cost more to clear up, call out all these emergency services and replace the bus stop than the one-speed camera.”
They reiterated that despite the newly installed traffic calming measures, dangerous drivers are not reducing their speed and another solution was needed.
Residents are said to be working with the council and Greater Manchester Police on the matter.
A council spokesman said: “A number of traffic calming measures have been installed in Ainsworth, and we will be considering what further steps could be taken. We have previously discussed proposals with Ainsworth Community Association and Bury Rural Inequalities Forum.
“We are also working with the police around enforcement – in fact, GMP’s neighbourhood team was in Ainsworth on Friday and Saturday last week as part of rolling enforcements across the borough addressing speeding and wider anti-social driving (e.g. drivers on mobiles).”
If you have a story, please email me at Harriet.Heywood@newsquest.co.uk or tweet @Heywoodharriet_
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel